She is Clueless
by lun27
Summary: Hermione struggles with the pressure of war seething below the surface and her friendships are threatened by the insecurities she hides. She finds her world view shattered, when even Malfoy stumbles under the pending threat of Voldemort's dark plans. But that doesn't mean she likes the prick. 7th year at Hogwarts. AU.
1. She has Chores

**I just want to add that I am not a native english speaker so the beginning of this story starts a little clumsily. I improved a lot in the writing process so I hope you won't give up on my story too early :)**

 **There is lots of drama ahead, some mystery and a very slow-burn Dramione!**

* * *

A loud buzz jolted Hermione out of her sleep. She jerked upwards in her bed but recovered quickly, realizing that it was only her wand alarm. Rubbing her tired eyes, she murmured the counter spell and got up for the day.

Before leaving her private quarters, Hermione took the time to make sure that her Head Girl Badge was fastened correctly to her uniform. Thinking about the more dreadful parts of her new job, she sighed. Somehow, Hermione had imagined this task to be easier, this _year_ to be easier. Instead, she wasn't as sure of her capabilities as she used to be anymore. It didn't help that she detested the one sharing her position. Why in the name of Merlin they had elected _him_ for Head Boy, was beyond her. As she hurried through the Dungeons towards the Great Hall, Hermione mentally catalogued her daily tasks. Frowning, Hermione realised that today was her turn. Shaking her head, she sped up her pace to divert her attention elsewhere. She'd deal with _that_ duty at the appointed time, no need to ruin her concentration for the whole day by worrying about it.

When Hermione made it to the Entrance Hall, she spotted a still bleary eyed Harry and an equally tired Ron waiting for her at the grand doors. As soon as her friends noticed her, they waved her over and together the three of them entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Passing the House Tables they discovered that they were in fact one of the early risers that morning, except for the Ravenclaws, who were already assembled in little groups at their table studying or reading.

Once they were seated among their fellow seventh years at the Gryffindor Table, Ron instantly fell into a conversation with Dean and Seamus about this year's Hogwarts Quidditch Teams. Tryouts had been the week prior, giving the boys fodder for conversation. Realizing that Ron was a lost cause, Hermione tried to get Harry's attention, but he couldn't tear his eyes off Ginny, who was laughing with her friends a few seats down the table.

"You mustn't forget that Smith is now in charge and promised retribution for last years' fail. He wants to change his tactics completely and drop his last seeker," Seamus replied to Ron's question about the Hufflepuff team. "I'm just not quite sure who'll take his place."

"Who do you think will replace Summerby as seeker, Harry?" Dean asked looking at him expectantly.

"What?" Harry turned around seeming slightly confused by being shaken out of his reverie.

"Never mind," Ron rolled his eyes good-naturedly at his friend and continued his analysis of the Hufflepuffs' game tactics with Dean and Seamus.

Giving up on seeking her friends' attention with a huff, Hermione made herself a marmalade toast. Didn't they know that there were more important things than _Quidditch_? Reaching for the Daily Prophet that had already been delivered, she turned to page one. She had to swallow hard, when her breakfast nearly made a reappearance. Her eyes watered slightly, when she choked on her last bite. The article Hermione had spotted was listing two attacks frighteningly close to her home.

Putting the newspaper as well as her toast aside, Hermione pulled out her Potions essay instead, scouring it for any wayward mistakes. She really should be used to the dreadful news that reached Hogwarts week after week by now. But it continued to fill her with lung-squeezing hopelessness. It felt like a tsunami that you were powerless to escape from, announcing its presence with gigantic waves that conquered the horizon long before the actual impact. Hermione got the uncomfortable feeling that it was already too late for her to run. The wave would catch up to her eventually. How could she leave her friends to deal with its destruction anyway? Hermione huffed, her friends that didn't even seem to give a care in the world, discussing Quidditch tactics instead of preparation measures. Shaking her head, she returned her attention back to her essay.

She could have helped Neville with his Potions essay, but he was off to the Ravenclaw table, trying to explain to Luna why Nargles could not help Snapping Grass fend off hungry Unicorns. Next to them sat Ernie Macmillan with his study group. The other Ravenclaws simply ignored the quirky girl who was swinging her amulets at Neville. Hermione could have an enlightening discussion with Ernie about their last Astronomy lesson, but seeing as they were not really friends outside of the classroom, she didn't want to interrupt his breakfast. Nor did she have time to anyway. Her essays needed to be reread, of course. She would not let her grades slip because she was socialising at the breakfast table rather than adding citations and proofreading her assignment.

* * *

After a quiet breakfast, Hermione and her friends hurried to their Charms Class. When everyone had settled into class - Harry and Ron on either side of her - Professor Flitwick asked his students about the _Tergeo_ Charm. Hermione's hand shot up and before her teacher could pronounce the last syllable of her name she started to rattle off the answer with textbook-precision. She didn't feel particularly proud, as she was used to answering correctly. However, she felt content at last, when Professor Flitwick awarded her ten House Points for her answer. Subsequently, she was able to answer three more questions and became irritated with the slow pace the lesson was progressing. Did no one do their assigned reading?

When Hermione finished her last monologue about the different pronunciations and their influence on cleaning spells, she heard hushed giggling from Lavender who was sitting directly behind her. The girl whispered in a strange, high-pitched voice to Parvati and Hermione realized that they were mocking her for her ability to cite textbook passages. Feeling a lump rise in her throat she swallowed hard to quell the sensation. Unable to suppress her humiliation Hermione's ears heated up.

Grinding her teeth, she kept herself from turning around and scolding her housemates for disturbing the lesson, which would give them even more ammunition to make fun of her. They were just jealous, Hermione told herself and lowered her head to her notes. Staring at the lines, she desperately tried to concentrate on her last notation, but despite her best efforts the words were swimming in front of her eyes.

Hermione's embarrassment slowly turned into anger. In the wizarding world women didn't know their own worth. They didn't try to learn and study because they didn't think they would need it anyway. They didn't know anything, silly girls with their shiny hair and pretty painted nails. Hermione looked down at her own short cut and ink strained ones. What would they ever accomplish other than finding a man and cooking his meals while ironing his tie for work?

She wouldn't settle for that kind of life. She was meant to _be_ someone. Hermione _knew_ it, because she was different than them, she was smarter. Never would she sit at home having litters of children she had to cook for and clean up after. Hermione wouldn't throw away her potential to stay at home and do household chores. Lavender and Parvati would be content to someday sit at home and tend to their tots while gossiping, cooking, and cleaning. She might not get to laugh now, but she would be the one laughing in the end when she would employ their spouses and make changes in the Ministry to end the many injustices there. Hermione refused to let herself be pushed aside and continued to hold her head up high mimicking her hand in the following classes.

* * *

Leaving Ancient Runes in the afternoon, Hermione made her way to her office.

She was about to turn the corner, when she was shoved forcefully from behind, causing her to stumble and her notes that she had carried to file later slipped from her hands. In a heap of papers they scattered across the floor in front of her.

"Try to not stand in my way, will you, Granger?" Theodore Nott said haughtily.

Hermione grumbled under her breath and reached flustered for her notes, fearing that they would be trampled, if she didn't hurry to gather them up. Nott laughed and stepped on one on purpose, keeping her from picking it up.

"You are a witch, aren't you?" he asked. "At least you're blazing that presumptuous assertion around at every opportunity you get. But, Granger," he leaned down, like she was an imbecile, "a real witch wouldn't crawl around in the dirt if she can wave her wand to pick up her things."

Hermione opened her mouth to deduct a heavy sum of points from the insolent Slytherin, when she was interrupted.

"Ten points, Nott," the Head Boy drawled.

"Oh, come on! It is the truth after all," he complained with an amused glint in his eyes, still not taking the situation seriously.

"It is. But as she's Head Girl, she can deduce as many points as she wants as punishment and you would have lost at least fifty for that. Now that I already disciplined you, she can't give you a second punishment. That just wouldn't be fair, would it, Granger?"

Hermione fumed.

"Also, I'll have to listen to her ranting about how awful my friends are and why I can't keep them on a tighter leash. You deserved it for that alone, Theo" he sneered.

"Just get lost," Hermione growled and yanked the parchment free from underneath Nott's boot.

Throwing them a last glare, Hermione trudged on to the Head's office. To her great chagrin the Head Boy followed her, seemingly having the same aim. She really didn't want to be in her office at the same time as him. Technically, it was _their_ office, but she didn't want to actually admit, that _he_ had a desk in the cosy, wood-panelled room as well. He wasn't worthy of his place in their office in her opinion. Most of the time he didn't even use it to work on his assigned tasks or even his homework. While Hermione put her hard earned desk to good use, he spent more time there talking with his righteous friends. Often times some bint sat on his desk, swinging her legs and laughing shrilly at his jokes giving her a migraine and distracting her from her tasks. The younger female Prefects would occasionally even stay after meetings to flirt with the git shamelessly. Hermione was tempted to hex all of them into next week, but she was supposed to set an example of an immaculate student so she reverted to politely asking them to be quiet numerous times.

Once Hermione had dreamed about what she would do when she got herself a desk in that office. Now, she dreaded the office time. On top of _his_ presence there came the everyday problems the Hogwarts students brought to their Heads. She had no patience for all the incessant moaning about schoolwork and wailing over unfair grading. It was not her fault, that they didn't work harder, neither was it the teachers'. So Hermione told them to either get off their arses and start learning or go to the professor that was giving them a hard time and argue for a higher mark. That taught them to negotiate and stand up for themselves more than being mothered by her. No one would do that for them in the workplace, Hermione often told the students coming to her, before she send them on their merry way. She wasn't lazy, she just wanted what was best for them!

Today, like every other miserable day, there was a young boy ranting about his Arithmancy project. They were supposed to complete the assignment in pairs, but he complained that he had done most of the work on his own and was appalled to find out that he and his partner received the same mark. The Ravenclaw spent a mind numbingly amount of time complaining about the senselessness of the project before he moved onto his partner's brain capacity and then facial features.

'Nothing new there,' Hermione thought with an internal eye roll, thinking back of endless projects _she_ had done the essential work for. Inwardly she pitied him because she could comprehend his situation well. Still, Hermione put on her best Professor McGonagall impersonation.

"Have you considered asking your partner to do his part, or - if he was unable to do so - to work on it together?" she asked critically and sighed when the Ravenclaw shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"I cannot run after Danny all the time, he should have just prepared his part and be done with it!" the pale-faced boy complained.

"And have you tried asking the teacher for help to divide the tasks?" she inquired. He sunk down in his simple wooden chair with bright red ears.

"See? Try solving problems on your own, before taking up time of the Head Students," she lectured him. "Now hush, I have other appointments waiting!" Hermione sent him out of her office ignoring his questions on how to get his well-deserved grade adjusted.

Pouring herself a glass of water she leaned back to breathe deeply for a second, before she felt ready to let in the next student.

The infinite problems of the students put Hermione under constant stress. Why couldn't they try to solve their problems themselves first? She was there to help, but sometimes Hermione got the feeling that instead of looking for a solution on their own, the students chose the easier way and let her do all the negotiation with teachers and punishing of classmates picking on them. It left her unsatisfied that they thought her capable of vanishing all their troubles with a swish and flick of her wand. Sometimes, she had the feeling that they had overly high expectations of her. She wasn't almighty!

"Very sensitive, Granger," Malfoy drawled, interrupting her rare moment of peace without looking up from his desk. He was actually working for a change, writing the timetables for the Prefects' rounds.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" Hermione challenged him with arched eyebrows.

"I'm not sure if you forgot, but we are supposed to listen to the students' problems and help them find a solution. Not to tell them that they _are_ the problem," he responded flippantly while gripping his pen like he had to pull himself together _immensely_ to not insult her.

"Oh, you would know! Who's the bully, telling others they are nothing, but the dirt under his shoes?" she snarled crossing her arms defensively. Hermione didn't have the perseverance he had to keep this conservation from turning into an argument.

"What's that got to do with you deeming them a waste of time and not doing your job?" Malfoy asked clearly irritated and finally looked up at her.

"Not doing my job? I'm here, aren't I? As opposed to _you_ , Malfoy, who doesn't think this task is important enough to show up when it's his turn!"

His eyebrows furrowed together in a line, his irritation evident on his face. "I was late. One time," he snarled.

"That's what you say! You were just waiting for me to sub, admit it!" Hermione accused him.

He opened his mouth for an angry retort, but stopped and shook his head, "Whatever, Mudblood." Then he got up and opened their office door. "Next one! Miss Granger is anxiously waiting to listen to all of your problems," he called out to the students waiting in a long line out the door.

"Hey!" Hermione called after him and Malfoy turned around to smirk at her. "Have fun, Head Girl!" he mocked her, while a Ravenclaw girl slipped in, waving a library book with obvious splatters of pumpkin juice on it. Hermione groaned and pictured choking Malloy until he turned blue to avoid focusing her anger at the young girl in front of her.

"Have a seat," she told her and carried on with her dreaded chores.

* * *

"Can you believe this?" Ron groaned at dinner while shovelling piles of food onto his plate. "It will take forever to finish today's homework alone! How do they expect us to get through the rest of the week?" Harry looked worried as well.

"How much do you still have to do?" Hermione asked. "Have you already finished your work from last week's lessons?"

Ron turned bright red at her question and quickly took a huge bite of kidney pie, leaving Harry to explain to Hermione that they hadn't even started yet. Already expecting that answer, Hermione rolled her eyes. She still held hope that one day they would do their homework independently.

"Well, what do you have to do?" she inquired. "Maybe we can get it in order so you can work on the subjects that have the shortest deadline first and leave the longer ones for last."

"I fink for Trewamey we hamf to do ose skar charts," Ron remembered with his mouth still overly full with pie.

Hermione resisted the urge to lecture him about his table manners. She wasn't his mother after all. Instead, Hermione ignored the redhead and didn't even bother trying to understand what he had said around the pie he was chewing. She looked at Harry who had pulled a handful of folded papers out of his pocket, unfolded them and shuffled them around. He turned one page on its front and seemed to finally have found his notes on the assignment.

"We have to list the relations of Mars to Mercury and the planets' influence on the stock market," he deciphered his own scrawled handwriting.

"You'll have to see for yourself how to manage this task," Hermione shrugged as she had happily dropped the farce of a class. "What else do you have?"

"There was something for Defence as well, wasn't there?" Harry pondered.

"Do you mean the revision of _Diffindio_ and rereading the chapter about how the spell can go wrong and how to fix it?" Hermione asked with eyebrows raised high. "Harry, that is due tomorrow!" Ron nearly dropped his fork and looked at her shocked and Harry seemed dumbstruck as well.

"Guys, really. You've got your schedules! You should take a look at them from time to time," she shook her head at their ability to completely disregard any organisation or planning in their life. "You can read my summary on that chapter, but you'll have to practice on your own because I am doing rounds tonight. Don't worry, that was second year material. It's rather easy."

"Hermione you're the best," Harry declared with puppy eyes that made her smile a little.

"I know."

* * *

Hermione liked the nightly rounds. It calmed her to see the usually bustling and noisy castle halls empty and still. She had already sent her rounds partner Anthony on his way back to his common room. In order to pass one of her favourite courtyards, she took the longer route to hers on purpose. She liked to soak in the sight of the peaceful night sky before returning to her comfortable and warm bed.

The night was not offering Hermione the rest the clear darkness in the void among the stars had promised. Lying on her back, she couldn't keep her wandering thoughts at bay. It riled her up to no end that Nott treated her like he did. Malfoy nowadays kept from openly insulting her without provocation, but he didn't hesitate backing up his friends at every opportunity. How she wished that someone else would be in Malfoy's place. Anyone else. She'd even prefer to share her position with a male version of Lavender over him! At the beginning it had been so awful to be forced to meet with him regularly and discuss organisational matters at least once a week, that Hermione had occasionally entertained the idea of resigning. She often lay in bed wide-awake, her brain still pumping incensing adrenaline through her body, after finally being able to retire late in the evening after endless negotiations and fights. Everything with him was an unceasing tug of war, a constant struggle for superiority.

* * *

Rubbing at her tired eyes and constantly suppressing yawns, Hermione struggled through the next day. She was glad, that Malfoy was in charge of the consultations today, so she was free to settle down with a book in their common room after classes, confident that she wouldn't be disturbed for at least two hours. She would seize the opportunity to relax a bit before going to the library to finish her homework.

She was interrupted far too early, in her opinion, when the Head Boy emerged from the entrance of their quarters.

"Granger, we have to talk about some serious issues."

Sighing, Hermione took her time to mark the page she was currently reading and put the book aside calmly. She knew that it irked him, when she wasted his time, so she took great satisfaction in reacting as if she had all the time in the world.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

She sneered at him and got up, tired of Malfoy towering over her. "I won't stoop to your level, Malfoy. Talk to me when you've calmed down. I won't let myself be yelled at." With that she left to the library. Who did he think he was, talking to her like that?

::::::::::::

 **Harry and Ron really are incorrigible regarding their homework :D**

 **What do you think about my first chapter? Did it get you hooked?**

 **This was initially supposed to be a short Romance for some writing practice and turned out to be a little longer than planned :'D**

 _Thank you Nora Fares for helping me to rewrite this :))_


	2. She's Scolded

**This chapter is a little Christmas present :) I actually wanted to wait a few more days before updating, but I just finished a new chapter and felt ready to publish this one.**

 **Much love to all my readers, betas and the people you love! Merry Christmas!**

 **Previously:**

 **"Granger, we have to talk about some serious issues."**

 **::::::::::::**

* * *

Hermione had to suppress a satisfied smirk when she saw his jaw tighten at her obvious disinterest in whatever he wanted to discuss.

"What is so important that you come to me out of your own accord? Do you need help with something, Malfoy?" she asked sweetly.

"Careful, Granger, or I'm running straight to McG to tell her how sloppy you are with your Head chores."

" _Mac Gee_?" Hermione echoed. "Show some respect, won't you? _Professor McGonagall_ wouldn't even grant you the time to tell her whatever you want to complain about, if she knew how you call her!"

"Good thing, the old hag will never know," he growled. "And I'm not discussing the appropriate way to address our teachers with you, Granger. We are talking about you not doing your job here."

"Me- _WHAT_?" Hermione spluttered.

"Oh, you heard me just right. See, I really don't give a flying fuck how you deal with your share of consultations, but I don't appreciate when the students _you_ send away come to _me_ the next day to solve the problem you didn't care to acknowledge."

Hermione gaped at him like a fish out of the water. No way! "You mean that boy -" she had to swallow. "He came to _you_ today? Of all people?!"

"What has this to do with me? I refuse to do your tasks as well as mine!"

Hermione couldn't believe it. Who in the world would go to Malfoy for help of their own accord? She felt betrayed somehow. Wasn't she good enough for the insolent Ravenclaw? She had listened to him whining for half an hour! She had given him helpful advice how to handle the problem himself. Why in Merlin's name did he have to go to _Malfoy_ now?

"You're sure it was the same problem? I'm certain he has managed to find another thing to complain about today."

Malfoy scoffed. "Do you think I'm that forgetful? I was _there_ yesterday, I remember exactly what his problem was."

"You must have confused it with something else," Hermione shook her head. As if that boy would go back with the same problem to ask Malfoy for help. That simply couldn't be possible. She heavily doubted Malfoy's version of things.

"You think I'm lying?" he growled and leaned in menacingly. Hermione had fought with him enough times to know when his tipping point was reached. One really wouldn't wish to be around him in that mood. It certainly wasn't safe for mind and body to keep riling him up at this stage.

She held up her hand. "Listen Malfoy, I don't have a clue what you think his problem was and I really don't have the time or patience to discuss this with you."

"Don't fucking act all patronizingly! I'm telling you to do your effin' job!"

She sneered at him and got up, tired of Malfoy towering over her. "I won't stoop to your level, Malfoy. Talk to me when you've calmed down. I won't let myself be yelled at." With that she left to the library. Who did he think he was, talking to her like that?

Hermione settled down in her favourite spot in the rarely used History Section of the library. She had discovered long ago that most students preferred being surrounded by the more interesting subjects. Hermione didn't mind the contents of the books around her, as the promise of knowledge was calming her regardless of the topic. Opening her books, she began her research for her essay about the Devil's Snare and how to pacify it until it became as tame as a baby Niffler.

Her tired mind didn't allow for much concentration, however and she mulled over the problem with the consultations in her head. Instead of reading the texts she had researched, she pondered on a solution. She couldn't simply let the students down. No one should have to go to Malfoy for help just because she didn't have enough time for every one of them. On the other hand, she couldn't manage everything on her own. The constant pressure was robbing her off her sleep already. When could she relax if not at the dead of the night, when no one could ask her to do anything? If only the more organisational problems could be dealt with separately from the personal and scholarly ones. Hermione had no doubt that Malfoy was perfectly capable of handling drawing up documents and dealing with the preparations for Quidditch matches with the teams. If she could manage to dump those tasks on him completely, no student would be forced to go to him for the more serious topics any more.

After what must have been two hours, she felt her Joint Mirror grow warm in her pocket. Professor McGonagall had given one of these magic mirrors to each of the Head Students as a means of communication at the beginning of the school year. Hermione didn't want to use it in the quiet library, so she packed her stuff and quickly left her desk to use it without disturbing someone else's studies. The wizarding version of a mobile phone was formed out of fine china. There were delicate and beautiful blue and golden floral elements adorning the lid, below it was fitted with a golden mount. It worked a bit like the fake Galleons she had cast a _Protean_ Charm on to use for communication with the members of Dumbledore's Army. As Hermione pushed through the heavy double doors, she opened the lid and Malfoy's face appeared on the small glass surface. In his usual rude mannerism, he began speaking without even greeting her.

"Granger, my friends are coming over tonight so you'd do best to steer clear of the common room." Malfoy casually flicked a loose strand of hair from his eyes. In her most vicious fantasies, Hermione imagined hexing him a head of hair like her own that wasn't looking so well kept and meticulous all day. It would be hell for him. She noted, that he seemed to have calmed down a bit, but typically Malfoy he still resonated an air of condescension, not even looking at her while speaking.

"Oh no, no, no. No! We'll be discussing this!" she demanded as he rolled his eyes. "I'll be back in the dorm in five minutes," Hermione huffed.

A double-sided mirror rippled as an agitated Hermione passed through it to enter the Head Students' quarters. "You will not use our common room as your private party location!" she shouted, motioning to the room in front of her.

"I will use it however I please," Malfoy retorted, not even bothering to look up from the book he was reading which irked Hermione greatly. He had propped his feet up on the table, making her twitch with annoyance. "What are you going to do to keep me from inviting my friends over, Granger?" he grinned, already knowing that she couldn't do anything at all.

Oh, she would pay him back for that. Hermione dropped her school bag at the foot of the spiral staircase to their private dorms and took two steps at a time up to her room. Grabbing parchment, some ink and a quill from her small desk, she returned downstairs with the plan of implementing her idea about the consultation problem. She wanted to seize the opportunity of catching Malfoy off guard to wrestle this onto him without him even realising. This way Hermione calculated her chances at persuading him way higher than by discussing the matter officially. Usually they would not disturb their free time for Head Organisations but Hermione knew, if she made this an official meeting she wouldn't stand a chance against his way of reasoning. So she had to play Slytherin and be a bit more sneaky and cunning about this than her usual brash Gryffindor nature.

"Listen Malfoy, we need to rearrange some of our duties," Hermione said, spreading her work neatly on the table in front of Malfoy.

"So you admit that you fucked up?"

"Well, no," she answered and plopped down in one of the dark, wooden chairs. "But I need to make more time for our student consultations. The office hours clearly are too short to deal with every student. We can't have them pester the teachers with their minor problems, now can we?"

"I don't care, as long as I don't have to do extra work," he brushed her off, as he was clearly uninterested in having this conversation.

"That is exactly what I was proposing," she nodded and critically eyed his feet still propped up on the table, pondering whether it was a good point to scold him for dirtying their furniture or if it would only derail her cause.

"No, you weren't!" Malfoy growled taking his feet off the table and leaning forward. "You already decided on it. How about asking the Head Boy _first_ before making decisions?"

"Do you mean to skive off your duties?" she asked, looking at him menacingly. "Because I will not put up with that."

"You insolent bint!" he snarled.

Hermione just raised one of her eyebrows at him with the signature Malfoy peeved look that only infuriated him further.

"Half an hour," he relented finally, after they had stared each other down for several seconds. "I'm not doing more than half an hour."

"I'll see what I can do." Hermione scribbled a quick schedule on a piece of parchment. Then she switched some around and erased some others. When she was satisfied with the plan, she made a magical copy and slid one over to Malfoy.

"Wait," he eyed the schedule critically. "You added topics for every consultation? What's this? Quidditch and other after school activities? Official matters? Personal problems and problems of academic nature? What is this Unicorn Dung? Over planning much?"

"It is my strategy of improving our consultations," Hermione offered.

"And why the heck do I get all the organisational stuff? I don't want to draw up permissions for every tit and tat all the time!"

"If you want to complain about the tasks involved with the position of Head Boy, you can ask Professor McGonagall to resign from your post," she brushed him off.

"You are not the only one in Head position, so you don't get to make all the decisions on your own," he growled.

"I've always consulted you about my decisions like Professor McGonagall told us to," Hermione cried in outrage.

"No, you haven't," he said hotly, putting his schedule down to regard her with a menacing glare. "You suddenly tell me that we have to make more time for consultations and take charge of the redistribution without even asking me about my opinion on the matter!"

She threw her hands into the air. "That's because I already had it figured out! That was the easiest way to solve the problem."

"Which fucking problem?" he asked sourly. "The problem here is you not taking the students' matters seriously!"

"That's not true and you know that," she told him calmly. She was the one with the upper hand here, no need to give up on it because of his silly accusations.

"So why did you assign topics to our consultations?"

"Not all issues of the students could be dealt with, so I decided to expand the office hours. That's only logical," she skirted the topic. No need to tell him that she thought him inappropriate for the job to his face.

"You're lying," he claimed.

"N…no, why would I be lying?"

"You think I'm not competent enough, do you?" he scoffed, leaning back in his chair, rocking it backwards and balancing it dangerously on only two legs.

"What? _No_!" Hermione denied fiercely, withstanding the urge to push him and watch him tumble over. He always managed to hit the mark with his assumptions.

"You actually do!" Malfoy laughed. "Otherwise you would have distributed the tasks evenly, wouldn't you?" he asked in a low voice, letting the chair fall forward again and leaning his elbows on the table.

Hermione pressed her lips together angrily. "Fine, I don't think it is acceptable for the students to be forced to go to _you_ for consultation," she growled.

"When you're the one who's too insensitive to help them at all," Malfoy grinned. "I can't wait for this to blow up in your face." Hermione couldn't stand looking at his smug grin for another moment, so she decided to barricade herself in her room. How dare he assume her to fail at anything at all!

* * *

They were in _her_ common room! Hermione pulled a face at the thought of having to march past them to leave her quarters, but she had missed dinner and was growing hungrier by the second. Just a quick visit to the kitchens to get some delicious sandwiches from Dobby and she'd be good!

Couldn't Malfoy meet them in the Slytherin Common Room just once? No, he had to lounge out there, talking and laughing extra loud for the sole purpose of annoying her! She tied her hair and pinned it up into a messy bun. Not that a neat bun was ever possible with her hair.

'Well, I can't help it,' Hermione thought, as her stomach grumbled angrily.

She threw on a light wool cardigan, donned her coat and made her way down the narrow winding staircase, catching a glimpse of the moon-lit Hogwarts grounds and the night sky through the gothic windows before the view was swallowed by the murky lake when she reached the lower level with it's entrance to the dungeons.

"If that isn't our dear Head Girl!" Pansy's shrill voice greeted her at the foot of the stairs.

Hermione ground her teeth to keep herself from returning a snarky comment of her own. No use wasting energy on an airhead like Pansy.

"Are those ickle ducklings on your PJs?" Pansy squealed from her position on Malfoy's lap. Malfoy turned his head to smirk at her as she passed.

"Cheers, Granger," he said, toasting her with a raised glass filled with a golden liquid.

"Is that _alcohol_ , Malfoy?" she asked, her voice low.

"It's _Virgin Tears,_ " he grinned and Hermione turned bright red.

"Don't dare me, Malfoy. We are not allowed to have alcohol."

"Well, as a matter of fact this brand of whiskey is actually called _Virgin Tears_ , no need to feel offended because no one took pity yet."

Hermione felt her blood boil with rage and embarrassment, which she desperately tried to quell. Who cared about what Malfoy said anyway? Right?

"Whoa, look at her getting all worked up," Theodore Nott remarked drily. "Guess you hit a nerve there, Draco."

They laughed at her! Hermione took a deep breath to calm down. She was the superior one here, she reminded herself. Let them laugh.

"Well, if you have the urge to ruin your education for a cosy evening, never mind. But if you want to stay in school until you've finished your N.E.W.T.s," Hermione lowered her tone to get all of their attention. "I advise you to be gone when I return and take that disgusting stuff with you, or I'll tell Professor McGonagall what you are up to every other night."

With that she turned towards the exit without bothering to see their reaction and left through the double sided mirror leading to the dungeons not far from a tapestry of a sneezing Sea Serpent. The cool corridors of the never sleeping castle greeted her with calming silence that bustled with the magic surrounding her in the walls and rooms of the century old building.

When Hermione returned, after having her midnight snack and bidding the attentive House-Elves working in the kitchens goodnight, the common room lay dark and silent before her to her great surprise. She couldn't restrain the small smile forming on her lips at her obvious victory.

When she spotted snack papers and empty glasses strewn all over the beautifully carved coffee table in front of the fireplace that was now nearly burned down, she stopped short, however. Hermione frowned and angrily made her way towards the mess to clean it up with a few measured charms. Typical Slytherins to not tidy up after themselves!

"Finally found your place in the world?"

Hermione whirled around clutching at her chest in shock to find Malfoy still sitting in one of the comfy armchairs turned with its back to the entrance. She hadn't noticed him masked in the shadows.

* * *

 **::::::::::::**

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"You wouldn't want to lose your Head position, would you?" he asked without a hint of threat in his voice, but it lay in his words heavily and Hermione swallowed.**

 **Typical Malfoy to blackmail her to keep her mouth shut!**

* * *

 **I love writing Draco, he is just so mean! :D How do you like him in this chapter? Do you think he was right accusing Hermione of not doing her job?**

 _Thank you to CeeCeeSings, hunnybunny81 and chefke for the help on the first two chapters!_

 _Thank you Nora Fares for helping me to rewrite this! 3_


	3. She's Asked Out

**I've merged some chapters because I decided to make them a little longer in the future. I hope this worked and the formatting isn't messed up. I'll check this again. No worries, the content hasn't changed and the new chapter will be up soon! I'm sorry for the delay :)**

 **Previously:**

When she returned, the common room lay dark and silent before her. "Finally found your place in the world?" She whirled around to find Malfoy still sitting in one of the comfy armchairs.

 **::::::::::::**

* * *

"What?" Hermione managed to croak out, still high on adrenaline from the little scare.

"Cleaning up after Purebloods, of course," he drawled with a smile, sitting in the wingback chair like his majesty himself.

The witch glared at him, "Careful, Malfoy, or my tongue might slip in front of Professor McGonagall about your little party nights."

He frowned at her. "You really are making this difficult," he remarked. "Are you disappointed that you aren't invited in on the fun? Admit it, in reality you are just angry at your friends, for never asking you to attend _their_ evenings," he gloated.

"My friends, in contrast to yours are not drinking themselves silly until late at night!" Hermione snarled.

Malfoy just laughed at her. "You're quite naive, aren't you?"

"What do _you_ know about what Gryffindors do with their free time?" she asked sceptical.

He leaned forward. "According to my last shag, they are quite happy with you out of the house, so they are free to have fun without judgement, Granger," the Head Boy informed her.

Hermione winced at his crude language but snorted unbelievingly. Still, the feeling in her gut told her, that he was probably right and it somehow stung to not be familiar with her friends' evening activities and the possibility of being excluded.

"Don't get yourself worked up over those nitwits," the blonde said and got up to walk past her. "I bet those losers only drink cheap booze that tastes awful and makes your head hurt like hell."

Malfoy turned around as if suddenly remembering why he had stayed and waited for her in the first place. "Next time you threaten my friends to not have fun, I advise you to remember, that I know all about your late night walks and your sloppy handling of the student's problems. You wouldn't want to lose your head position, would you?" he asked without a hint of threat in his voice, but it lay in his words heavily and Hermione swallowed.

"You wouldn't…" she started.

"Would I not?" he interrupted her with one eyebrow shooting up, before he turned around and left.

Hermione was fuming, but she couldn't help the situation. Typical Malfoy to blackmail her to keep her mouth shut!

* * *

When Hermione got up the next morning, she still couldn't wrap her head around Malfoy's behaviour.

'The gall that git has!' she thought as she flicked her wand to make her bed a bit more violently than necessary, scaring Crookshanks off the pillows in the process.

After the witch had chased her pet around the room to apologize for her rude behaviour with a hug that the cat didn't seem to appreciate at all, she took her time showering. While washing her hair, she leaned back letting the warm water run over her face soothingly. It calmed her nerves and when Hermione stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself, she felt content with the world again. Let Malfoy try to goad her, she wouldn't jump on it!

"Hermione, are you coming with us to Hogsmeade this weekend?" Ron asked her, when he plopped down next to her at the breakfast table.

"What? It's not Hogsmeade week yet, is it?" Hermione asked flustered, putting aside the paper she was currently reading and started browsing in her closely kept calendar to check the date, while simultaneously taking a sip from her tea.

Harry, sitting across from her, shook his head no and watched his friend worried when she choked on her still scalding hot drink. "Steady," he calmed her.

"The scheduled weekends are only in a few weeks. But we can go whenever we want to. We _are_ seventh year now, you know?" Ron reminded her, as he shoved bacon into his mouth.

"Ron, I have a lot on my mind lately. I have to finish some homework and as Head Girl I have to organize the Halloween festivity. We can go next Hogsmeade weekend," she reassured him.

"But we'll be busy babysitting third graders!" he whined, clearly not looking forward to the Prefect's duty of escorting the students on their way to the neighbouring village and back.

"Do you think I enjoy that?" she snarled.

"I didn't say that!" he defended himself. "I just think you should make a little more time for your friends, Hermione."

"What do you mean? We hang out every other night," she stated.

"Well, we _learn_ every other night. No hanging out really," Ron rectified.

"What do you propose we do? Play chess and chase some vicious Death Eaters? I've got enough of _those_ in my common room, no thanks!" she said, adding the last part with a hushed voice. "Also you need the time to study. Without me you wouldn't lift a finger. This year is important, don't you understand that?"

"Course I do! I'm just saying that friends are important too..." he looked down at his plate.

"We are learning as friends, are we not?" Hermione grew more and more impatient. What the hell did Ron expect of her? She didn't have time to play games and have parties. Maybe she was still a bit miffed about what Malfoy had implied about her friend's after school activities yesterday.

"I get it. You don't want to go to Hogsmeade with me. Why don't you just say it to my face, Hermione?" and without waiting for an answer he left her gaping at his sudden exit.

'Who does he think he is?!' Hermione looked at Harry for confirmation but he just shook his head again.

Her friend appeared like he wanted to say something so Hermione looked at him expectantly, but he swallowed whatever was on his tongue and silently continued eating. His mornings were usually most uncommunicative with his brain still muddled with sleep, Hermione conceded and didn't inquire.

When she got up to go to their first lesson, she nearly had to drag Harry along. He really detested Professor Snape's class. Especially since the teacher had discovered that Harry was using the teacher's old book to score higher marks than ever. It had provided the trio with some helpful spells, but Hermione had always warned Harry to not trust something he didn't know. She suspected the contents to include dangerous knowledge. After Snape had caught Harry brewing with the book, the boy had to spend the following evenings in agonizingly boring detention, scrubbing cauldrons of first year students. It was a bit unfair, Hermione admitted, but Harry hadn't come to her office hours to ask for mediation with their Potions professor so she had wisely kept out of the affair.

Todays lesson was surprisingly relaxed and they were even allowed quiet conversations with their brewing partners. Professor Snape moved from pair to pair criticising even the slightest nuance or discrepancy of colour, taking his time to condemn Terry Boot's and Ron's potion with exceptionally fool words. Hermione contemplated telling Harry about her Malfoy situation, but she didn't want to whine. After all of her hours spent listening to younger students whinge, she knew just how annoying it could be.

Leaving Ron behind, Harry tagged along with Hermione after the lesson, following her to her office. There she was storing some of her school books, because it was closer to the classrooms than her dorm in the dungeons. Harry plopped down in her office chair and leaned back, taking off his glasses to rub at his eyes. Hermione observed that he was unusually exhausted lately.

"Hermione, why are you angry at Ron?" Harry asked putting his glasses back on, while she didn't cease packing her books while rearranging the others on the shelf. Malfoy had changed the order again, separating hers from his own when she preferred a clear alphabetical order.

"What?" she asked absent-minded. "Oh, Ron. Yeah."

"So?" her friend probed gingerly, leaning forward to rest his arms on her office desk.

Hermione huffed and pushed the last book back into its place with a little more force than needed. "He expects me to lay my life at his feet, that's what's my problem. What does he think I do all day? Count daisies? Being Head Girl is hard work, you know?"

"I do, no need to get all worked up over it," Harry frowned.

"To do _what_?" she looked up at him challengingly.

"Nothing," he drew back quickly and adjusted his glasses again. Hermione got the feeling that Harry liked his glasses a bit too large so he had something to occupy his hands with. She squinted at them, clearly remembering that she had adjusted them magically for him once. Harry squirmed uncomfortably in his seat under her critical gaze. Yes, they definitely were tampered with.

Hermione sighed and put down her books for the day. "What do you expect me to do? Apologize for my Head position?" she asked him sceptically.

"Well, no. Just put all the schoolwork aside a minute for that matter. He's your friend, not just a study partner."

"You want me to let my grades slip?!" she cried out. "Do you want us to fail the N.E.W.T.s?"

"No! And we won't. Believe me," he assured her holding up his hands in defeat.

"You will, if you don't fix that attitude, Harry," she lectured him.

"You know, life's not all about schoolwork, Hermione," Harry drew his eyebrows together.

"Oh, because parties and girls are so important, are they now?" She watched his cheeks redden and drew the conclusion that she had hit close to home. So they _did_ have parties without her knowledge! Hermione felt some disappointment at being excluded by her friends. In her role as Head Girl she probably wouldn't have joined them, but not even knowing what her friends did in their free time without her made Hermione fret about what else they kept secret from her.

"It doesn't hurt to have a little fun from time to time!" Harry defended himself.

"I guess so," she said, unconvinced. "But on the long run you might do better with higher grades than drunken nights and hung-over mornings."

He gave up and slumped his shoulders. "Just please makeup with Ron. I can't listen to his griping anymore."

"I'll see what I can do," she promised reluctantly. Harry smiled and got up to leave, probably to catch Ron and have a similar conservation with him.

"See you later!" Hermione called after him, feeling a little lost alone in the empty office.

* * *

It took her two whole days before she managed to bring up the courage to apologize to Ron. But it wasn't her fault that he hadn't come to her himself, she thought in a recess of her mind. He had said things to apologize for as well.

Hermione encountered him on a rainy day on her way to the Greenhouses. She had left without Harry, who was still occupied snogging Ginny in an alcove by the Entrance Hall. Hermione had rolled her eyes at their apparent disinterest in getting to their next lesson on time, but had wisely kept from interrupting their intimate togetherness.

She spotted Ron walking ahead of her over the wet meadow towards their next lesson with Dean and Seamus. When she approached him, he didn't seem to notice her as he moved on.

"Ron!" she jogged after him. "Wait for me, please." Only then did he finally slow down and turned towards her.

"What do you want?" he asked impassively and waited for her to reach him while Dean and Seamus went ahead to escape the uncomfortable weather into the stifling and only insignificantly drier Greenhouse.

"I just… I'm sorry okay?" Hermione said and stopped short in front of Ron. "About turning you down. I've got a lot on my mind and didn't think about what I was saying the other day."

"Yeah, I already guessed so," he said looking to the side at the marvellous landscape of the Hogwarts grounds. Little droplets of rain got caught in his hair and clung to his fringe, reluctant to fall to the ground yet.

Hermione was surprised, "You did?"

"You seem pretty worked up over all your schoolwork and Head tasks and Malfoy of course," he rushed out as an explanation and shrugged his shoulders while wiping the rain from his face. "Who wouldn't?" he laughed nervously and Hermione smiled a little, taking pity on him and casting the water repellent charm she had already used on herself before leaving the protecting roof of the castle behind.

"Thanks, Ron," she said.

"Thanks?" he asked confused. "What for?"

"For understanding."

"Oh that… had a long talk with Harry you know?" he answered, sheepishly rubbing his neck. "Told me to accommodate you actually."

She grinned. "What would we both do without Harry?" she asked.

"Probably never talk to one another again," he laughed shyly and she agreed laughing along with him and together they went on towards the Greenhouse.

"Ron, I was wondering…"

"Yes?" he asked and looked at her from the side.

"Well, do you guys have any activity planned for Halloween? I mean for after the feast?" she focused on the ground ahead of them. "You know, the upper years are allowed to stay up longer, and I didn't plan anything yet and I thought that maybe you have some party or gathering as always, don't you? So I thought I could come along, just if you don't mind…"

"I'd like that," he interrupted her rant, smiling. "Actually the Hufflepuffs planned a night walk behind Hagrid's hut, it'll be fun."

"Uhh!" Hermione shuddered. "I'll probably scare myself to death!" she smiled. "I'd love that."

Ron gave her a wide grin and held open the glass door for her. Inside the students were already bustling about, as nobody wanted to linger outside longer than necessary.

"Will the others be there as well?" Hermione asked nervously when she saw Harry slip inside and move to stand next to Neville just a few minutes before the lesson would start. "I mean, Harry, Ginny…"

"I think they want to do something romantic," Ron pulled a face and Hermione had to laugh at that.

"Then it's good to have a distraction," she offered and he nodded with wide eyes, that made her laugh again at the horrified face he made at the notion of what Harry and Ginny might be up to.

* * *

If she left the feast at nine it would be early enough to get a warm coat from her room and meet Ron in the Entrance Hall for the night walk, Hermione went through the checklist for Halloween in her head. She'd have to hand over the responsibility of closing the feast to the younger Prefects, who weren't allowed to stay up that much longer anyhow, so she didn't feel bad about that. That only left Malfoy to supervise them. She had to persuade him to do that on his own, whatever it might cost.

Hermione was sure that it would solve many of her problems to spend the evening with Ron. He would be happy and hopefully wouldn't try to pester her about spending more time with them for at least two weeks. Then there'd be the last Gryffindor Quidditch match before Christmas, so another two weeks of blissful silence, as they would probably be practicing day in and out and she'd be content to study. The plan was perfect, she just had to manage to get Malfoy to agree with her.

She had seen Malfoy in Transfiguration last, but when Hermione didn't encounter the Head Boy in their common room after the lesson, she reverted to other means to contact him. Impatiently she pulled out her Joint Mirror, opened the lid and tapped the surface with her index finger, feeling the magic of the device run up her hand instantly, electrifying the hairs on her arm. It took Malfoy rather long to finally open his Mirror and she was confronted with his trademark sneer.

"I'm busy, Granger."

"And I need to discuss something important," she retorted. "Where are you?"

"Take a guess," he mocked her, sounding irritated.

"What? How should I know? Are you with your friends?" she asked, squinting at the mirror, trying to make out what was behind him. But the image was too small to show much more than his face.

Malfoy glowered at her, "I'm in our bloody office, stupid cow. You should know. _You_ were the one who gave me extra consultations!"

"Oh, right!" Hermione remembered that she had added this timeslot to his share of consultations. "I forgot. I'll meet you there." She quickly closed the device hoping that he would calm down by the time he was finished assisting the last student. She would need him in a rather good mood to convince him of her plan.

The Head Girl made her way to their office, entered quietly to not disrupt the consultations and sat down at her desk to listen to Malfoy dealing with the students' problems. Usually, Hermione was disinterested in his Head chores and she would work on her homework or on plans for rounds and school projects, but today she waited impatiently for the last student to leave.

The Slytherin actually took his time with each of them, Hermione noticed surprised. He even promised to talk to Snape about a failed potion that was the consequence of low quality ingredients rather than the students' incapability.

The last student in line was Niles Hanley, a lanky Slytherin boy with wide chin and narrow eyes. He was in consultation for the third time in a row, being the subject of endless discussions with various teachers and other students complaining about his bullying persona.

"Hanley again," Malfoy drawled in a bored tone and fixed the boy with piercing eyes. Hermione envied him for his effect on the other students. If Malfoy wanted to, he could get all of their attention with only one sentence.

The Head Boy got up, already impatient at the troublemaker and paced the length of the room behind his desk. "So you've found another poor sod to screw up?"

Hanley didn't answer and wisely didn't sit down either, but kept a safe distance from Malfoy by still hovering at the door.

"Listen Hanley," Malfoy said threateningly, stepping forth from behind his desk. "Either you pull yourself together and apologise to Mr-," he looked down at his records. "Spencer, or I am kicking your arse into detention for the next five weekends."

"As if I'd apologise to a fucking Halfblood!" Hanley spat.

 **::::::::::::**

 **Next Chapter:**

"Let go of him, Malfoy. You cannot assault students!" Hermione tried to pry him off the boy without success.

 **How do you like Hermione apologising to Ron? Isn't he just adorable?** **J**


	4. She's Scared

**I planned to publish this some days ago but because I've merged my chapters it took longer to review. On the other hand this is one of the longest chapters and I hope you'll like it!**

Thank you to all the people that are following the story already and those that left a review, I'm feeling overjoyed reading every single one of them :) And of course thank you to the people helping me with this story so far, you are the best!

::::::::::::

 **Previously:  
**

"Listen Hanley." Malfoy said threatening stepping forth from behind his desk. "Either you pull yourself together and apologise to Mr Spencer, or I am kicking your arse into detention for the next five weekends."

"...As if I'd apologise to a fucking half-blood!" Hanley spat.

* * *

In a sudden motion, Malfoy moved forward several steps and seized the lanky boys loose shirt and pressed him against the wall.

"Malfoy!" Hermione cried out shocked by his sudden aggressiveness.

"I'm at the end of my patience, Hanley!" the Slytherin whispered in a menacing tone, bringing his face close to Hanley's and completely ignoring Hermione. "You've already wasted enough of my life with your little quarrels. So I dare you to try me any further."

"Let go of him Malfoy, you cannot assault students!" Hermione tried to pry him off the boy without success.

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry okay, I won't hex him again, I won't!" cried the younger boy, tears leaking out of his brimming eyes.

"Good," Malfoy let him go of the frightened boy, whose shirt had been crumpled in Malfoys firm grip on his collar. Red splotches of shame appeared high on his cheekbones and he hurried to wipe away the stray tears.

"Next time be smart enough to bully a Gryffindor and not your own housemates," Malfoy growled at the terrified third-year who was nodding rapidly in agreement.

"What are you waiting for?" Malfoy roared. "Out of my sight, Hanley!"

The boy was gone faster than you could spell Quaffle.

"What is _wrong_ with you?!" Hermione shouted aghast when the door shut behind Hanley.

"Solved the problem, didn't I?" Malfoy asked in a completely calm and uninterested tone.

He looked down his nose at her, while smoothing out his shirt sleeve to cover up the corner of the still fresh black tattoo that had slipped out. Hermione had caught sight of the sliver of black on his left forearm when he had hoisted the miscreant up. She still eyed Malfoy's arm nervously when his sleeve covered it again. Hermione knew what it was, having seen it many times before, and she couldn't really get used to the thought of the hideous thing moving hidden underneath his shirt, under his skin, as thought it was alive.

"And you were a right arse in doing so," she observed, turning to face him, as he pushed his way past her towards his desk. "Punishing him for bullying that poor Spencer boy and in the next breath encouraging him to go and do the exact same thing to _my_ housemates?"

"Well at least your precious little Gryffindors have friends to defend them and kick back, don't they?" he growled annoyed with her attitude.

Just like that his simple statement stopped her planned tirade short.

"Isn't it you, who believes in them solving their own problems? I believe that is what I accomplished with Hanley just now, didn't I?" he challenged her.

Hermione didn't know what to say to that. That was quite clever of him, she surmised. The Gryffindors would pay the hooligan back ten fold when he tried to do anything to any of them and he wouldn't dare to mess with them again. So Hermione kept her mouth shut and turned her nose up at Malfoy, clearly disapproving of his approach on the matter.

Remembering her initial goal the Gryffindor nervously shuffled some of her papers from one side of her desk to another, shifting from foot to foot awkwardly. She'd have to convince him somehow to take over her part of supervising for the evening but she didn't know where to start.

"What do you want?" Malfoy pulled her out of her reverie.

"What?" she asked innocently, turning around to face him again.

"Don't play me stupid," he said drily raising an eyebrow at the Head Girl, piercing her with an appraising gaze. "You didn't come here to take part in my consultations, so you must want something else. I'm only asking you once: What. Do. You. Want," he pronounced every single word as thought Hermione was a mentally challenged child. As could be expected this did not go over well with her and she frowned. Yet Hermione remembered what she had come here for and swallowed the retort she was about to give.

She leaned against her desk seemingly unfazed. "I was wondering if you'd take over the coordination of the Prefects after the feast this evening," she told him in a casual tone.

"And you were wondering why?" the Slytherin asked in the same tone, mocking her attempt to copy his loftiness.

"Well," Hermione gave up on seeming unfazed. "I have planned something for myself, so I won't be there," she told him as a matter of fact and as vaguely as possible.

"Having a sleepover party with your books?" he mocked her.

She growled, "If you have to know: the Hufflepuffs planned a night walk and I promised to participate."

Malfoy laughed out loud, until he realised that the Gryffindor was serious. "Oh, that's gold," he said grinning. "Little bookworm Granger finally has a life."

She huffed, "If you're just being an arse about it, instead of telling me off right away…"

"I didn't," Malfoy interrupted her calmly crossing his arms casually.

"What?" Hermione asked unprepared for such an easy answer.

"I'll be delighted to take over your tasks," he stated looking her in the eyes dead serious.

She didn't trust that quite so easily. "What do you want in return?" she asked sceptically.

"Ah, you know the game," Malfoy grinned. Hermione looked at him expectantly. "I want one evening in the common room for me and my friends without your judging presence…"

"Done," she replied quickly.

"…every week until New Year," he added.

"Wait, what? No!" she back-pedalled gripping the edge of her desk.

"Okay," Malfoy turned around and slowly packed his bag to leave.

"Hey! What does that mean?" Hermione demanded.

"No common room, no deal," he answered and made his way to the door.

"Okay, wait. You got me. One evening. I'll stay in my room and leave you alone. But I need warnings." Malfoy had stopped leaving luckily, but he didn't turn around. "I mean, just a little reminder when they'll be there and for how long," she added.

"Alright," he shrugged as if he hadn't just won himself an argument and was gone.

That went smoother than Hermione had anticipated but she was a bit miffed at her quick surrender in favour of him. Well, never mind, she usually stayed in her room when the Slytherins were in their common room anyhow. She'd simply cast a silencing charm and burrow herself between her books. Hermione narrowed her eyes at that thought. How had Malfoy called it? A sleepover with her books?

* * *

The feast was a loud and chaotic affair. The students loved it, but for Hermione and Malfoy this meant a lot of juggling of tasks to keep everyone in line, especially as the Prefects were reluctant to help as much as they usually would. They preferred to hang around their friends of course, but responsibility didn't go on holiday so Hermione shooed them away from their cliques regularly to help enact order.

Her own friends left the feast quite early anyway as most of them had their own activities planned for the night. Harry and Ginny had reserved a spot on the Astronomy Tower and Ron wanted to prepare a little surprise for their night walk later.

When the festivity in the Great Hall finally died down a bit as the older years had already moved onto their private activities and only the younger students were still in the Great Hall enjoying the late curfew, Hermione got ready to leave as well. She took a last look at the younger students sitting at the four House Tables and noticed that they had mixed quite a lot. Some Ravenclaws had moved to sit at the Slytherin table for a round of Exploding Snap and some Hufflepuffs were impressed by first-year Gryffindors balancing cups of pumpkin juice on their foreheads until a third-year Slytherin _accidently_ bumped into them, draining them in the sticky drink. She wrinkled her nose and glanced at Malfoy, staying behind with the fifth year Prefects. He was currently talking to a pretty Ravenclaw girl instead of keeping an eye on the students around him.

The Head Boy would take charge of supervising the compliance with the curfew tonight, like they had stipulated. The curly-haired witch told herself that she didn't have to worry about how he managed to establish order. She really shouldn't worry, but she'd rather stay behind to oversee and enact the curfew - that was extended especially for this occasion - herself. But Hermione resolved that she had to do this. On the one hand she had agreed to meet with Ron and on the other this would likely promise Hermione free time for the next weeks to delve deep into her studies without disruption and fights, that always managed to steal her concentration and rob her of her peace of mind.

Truth was, despite handing himself over to the Ministry for taking the Dark Mark and Dumbledore assuring them that he had never actively worked for Voldemort, Hermione didn't trust Malfoy. Not even with the simple task of supervising youngsters. He was born into this legacy of fanaticism and hate and just because Voldemort didn't care to make use of his newest member, Malfoy was still the same bully he had been at eleven.

She made her way through the great doors into the Entrance Hall where Ron was already waiting by the Main Entrance waving Hermione over before he pulled her into a darker corner and swung a cloak over her head. She recognized Harry's invisibility cloak instantly and looked up at her friend questioningly as he pulled her out of their hiding spot. Ron indicated her to keep quiet when they followed a group of students on their way outside to slip through the Main Entrance before the heavy doors closed behind them. The two disguised Gryffindors fell back a few paces and followed them towards the back of the castle, down to Hagrid's Hut.

"I thought we might scare them a bit," Ron whispered grinning.

Hermione linked arms with him to fall in pace beside the redhead and shared his devilish grin. This was more exciting than she had anticipated.

In the distance they could already make out a group of Hufflepuffs standing by the edge of the forest behind Hagrid's Hut. Some of them carried torches while others used their wands to light the way instead. Stealthily they approached the group of students and Ron pulled her behind some trees to wait for the right moment to scare the living shit out of them. Hermione felt like she was twelve years again doing mischief together with her best friends.

The Hufflepuffs they were observing from their hiding spot were still preparing the route through the edge of the forest. No younger students were allowed obviously, as they had promised an extra scary experience for only the bravest of them all. A whole flock of Gryffindors had agreed to come at that promise, not surprisingly.

Wayne Hopkins, one of the more recognizable Hufflepuffs, stepped forward to greet the group before him and instructed them to their assigned posts on the night walk, informing them about the jinxes they were meant to aim at the brave travellers of what he called the 'ghost path'.

"We have marked the path with grave candles so no one gets lost. Nevertheless I want to remind you to look out for the other students. We promised Professor Sprout to bring everyone back safely," he explained to his fellow housemates.

They nodded impatiently. Everyone seemed to be looking forward to scaring their friends from the other Houses.

"Now that everything is clear we can start hiding. Everybody got a number which marks the candle where you have to find a hiding spot and wait for someone to pass by that you can scare. We'll start from this point and right there-" he turned towards the forest and pointed into the darkness at a small flame flickering behind red glass. "is our first candle." Hopkins remained in that position - his finger pointed in the direction where two red dots had appeared between the shrubs, gleaming menacingly at the Hufflepuffs who shuffled their feet, nervously straining their necks to look around Hopkins.

"What's that?" Hermione heard Hannah Abbott whisper when Hopkins stepped forward his wand raised bravely.

Hermione had to pull herself together to not laugh out loud at their nervous twitches when Ron imitated a low growling that gave even her goose bumps. Hopkins took a step back at the terrifying noise and his wand hand was shaking visibly. It sure must be a scary sight, when Hermione made the small light bulbs move in unison to give the impression of the eyes of a large animal moving closer. She then extinguished the magical lights, leaving the Hufflepuffs to stare into the dark between the trees, where only the lonely grave candle was flickering.

Hopkins licked his lips nervously. "Ahhem, well, we better start preparing before the others arrive."

"Are you kidding?" Kevin Whitby asked, eyes wide and still searching for the beast he assumed to lurk among the trees of the intimidating forest.

"Don't get yourself worked up, that's only your imagination, there's nothing big so close to the castle. That's probably just Fairy Lights," Hopkins scolded him, probably trying to reason with himself as well.

"Okay," Whitby answered unconvinced and the group slowly made their way to their assigned spots, keeping watchful eyes on the forest around them.

One after the other disappeared into the scrubs when they had reached the candle they were assigned to. Hermione and Ron followed until the already scared Whitby was the only one left to continue on the path towards his candle. They had found the ideal victim and continued to follow him without even trying to conceal their steps. So when he had moved far enough from the others Whitby started to turn around nervously to make out the source of the noise they made. When he stopped they stopped one step after him and they had him soon turning about panicking.

"Who's there?" the Hufflepuff called into the dark, looking at a spot slightly off to their left. "Hello?"

"Shut up, will you?" a voice came from behind him and he whirled around squealing only to discover Hannah Abbott emerging from the shrubs.

"Oh, it was only you," he exhaled relieved.

"Who?" Hannah asked, but didn't wait for an answer. "Come on, let's hide," she pulled him along.

Ron and Hermione were a bit crestfallen to have missed that opportunity so they decided to watch the show for a bit from a safe distance. They settled down close to the path, still covered by Harry's Invisibility Cloak to wait until the first wanderers appeared. After a while they could hear the first voices approaching. The two recognized Seamus and Dean who were whispering encouragingly at each other to continue down the scary path.

Hermione was quite impressed by the spell work the Hufflepuffs put into it. They gave the Gryffindors quite a fright with crawling fog and whimpering noises. Even the Bloody Baron made his presence known to the squealing students at one point of the path. All in all Hermione was quite happy, that they didn't have to go on the night walk themselves. She might be brave, she was a real Gryffindor of course, but there was no need to stress her nerves unnecessarily.

When the steady trickle of students passing by slowly ran dry, Hermione and Ron recognized some of the younger Gryffindors that had managed to make their way outside and illicitly join the night walk. They followed the naughty students and continued in their pursuit even after they had reached the last candle lighting the way and therefore marking the end of the night walk. When the bold Gryffindors already deemed themselves safe from further scares and started bragging about their bravery while slowly returning towards the secure castle, Hermione conjured an ice cold breeze to give them goose bumps and Ron growled lowly, "You are not allowed to be here." They screamed, horrified by the bodiless voice and stumbled to get away. Ron and Hermione pulled of the cloak laughing until their guts hurt.

"That was fun," she told Ron grinning and safely pocketed her wand in the shaft of her left boot.

"Right?" he said. "So now that you realized that I'm guaranteed fun company, do you want to join me to Hogsmeade next weekend?" he looked at her expectantly.

Hermione fidgeted. "Actually," she said, looking around. "I was hoping to get some free time to revise the first half of our studies. Isn't this enough for the week?" she asked.

He frowned at her. "Actually," Ron imitated her with a nasty twist in his voice. "If your time with me feels so all consuming and takes all your opportunity to study, you should rethink your priorities and just quit all your friendships, Hermione."

"No!" she said quickly, reaching for Ron as he already turned to leave. "I mean that isn't what I meant. I just thought like once a week we do something and then you do your Quidditch and stuff…"

"You made timetables for your social life now?" he turned around angrily. "You know, Hermione, when you don't want to spend time with your friends, it's okay. Just maybe stop pretending to like having fun and start being the stuck up bore you really are. No need lying about yourself, is there?" he asked nastily.

She felt her lungs quench in her chest. He hadn't just said that, had he? That's what Ron thought about her? Well, Malfoy did. But Ron knew her better, didn't he? He liked her for who she was, right? Hermione shook her head and tears fell loose from her lashes. Hiding them she turned around and ran. Ron didn't even call after her, probably didn't care. _She_ didn't care, she knew! She just wanted to be left alone. If they wanted her to, she'd love to be a stuck up bore! She enjoyed being on her own! She did!

Hermione ran until she was exhausted and sank to the ground, tears still spilling from her eyes as sobs wracked her body and she hugged herself. After a while she became still and took deeper breaths. Hermione was calm at first, but she could feel seconds ticking by and her sense returning slowly. When she looked around the Gryffindor suddenly wasn't so calm anymore.

* * *

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 **Next Chapter:**

"I'm begging you. Help me. I'm lost." The tears shook her body again and it had started raining.

 **How did you like the idea of the night walk? Does it fit the Halloween Theme? :) Next chapter will be scary!**

 _A big thanks to TheScribeOfDeath for the detailed comments on this chapter!_


	5. She's Lost

**Hello everybody!**

 **This chapter is one of my favourites so far, I hope you like it :) Leave me a review if you do, or if you don't. Criticism is always appreciated.**

 **Some Fan Art by Nora Fares for this chapter:** goo . gl/vaBcPm (yes, I have real fan art for my story :} super exciting isn't it?)

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 **::::::::::::**  
 **Previously:**

 **Hermione ran until she was exhausted. When she looked around, the Gryffindor suddenly wasn't so calm anymore.**

* * *

She was surrounded by trees standing closely together with thick scrub growing between them, making it impossible to see further than a few strides. Hermione realised that she was lost. She was undoubtedly lost. Panic seized her lungs and squeezed her fluttering heart. Suddenly, she felt the same damp fear that she had felt in the ministry's dark catacombs with Death Eaters breathing down her neck and lingering behind every corner. Only this time she was alone. Utterly on her own. Lonely.

 _'Stop it!'_

She heaved heavy breaths, still kneeling on the forest floor to calm herself. But that didn't help the oxygen flow so much as make her sides spike painfully from her protesting lungs. Somehow, she managed to drown the paralyzing fear back into its cave, where it lingered, waiting to crawl back out and overtake her cold limbs.

Okay. She could do this. She was clever right? And nothing was after her, right?

Hermione wasn't sure. She had heard _something_ , when she had run. But that was a while ago already. Whatever creatures' path she had crossed had probably turned tail at the sight of her and fled into the woods as well.

Or it followed her, at a more leisurely pace, keeping quiet and watchful. Waiting for it's opportunity to-

Hermione shook her head. Panicking now wouldn't help her. She had to think. Think fast! But she didn't remember. She couldn't for the life of her remember how she managed to get those flashes of genius, fruitful inspiration, and clever ideas. She didn't know _how_! How could she concentrate over heavy tomes and long rolls of papyrus, but not now, when her breaths shuttered strain and her muscles cramped with the need for action?

With icy hands, she roamed her pockets fruitlessly. Her wand was gone. Where the heck had she lost it? Hermione picked up a stick, to feel the calming familiarity, but the wood felt unfamiliar and lumpy. No smooth surface with carved ornaments and runes. Instead, she picked at the harsh bark until a splinter ran deep under her nail and she let the stick drop, whimpering and sucking at the pain. Hermione hugged herself again, turning about and pressing deeper into the bushes on the ground, seeking shelter from the daunting darkness in even gloomier places.

Again, she searched her pockets for that damned wand. It wasn't there, but neither were they empty. Her hand closed around the uncomforting but familiar object, pulling it out and pressing it to her face, seeking familiarity and safety that it couldn't give her. But the surface was smooth and cool, soothing the skin of her feverish cheeks. Hermione concentrated on the feeling of the lid on her cheek while she listened to the woods.

She breathed in and out. Somehow the scents were comforting too, if she let them. They were natural and moist, reminding her of the dungeons of her castle. In the past, she liked that place least of all in the ancient gothic building, preferring hidden gardens and lonely halls with huge windows instead. But ever since her common room was relocated to the dungeons, the place felt soothingly dark and peaceful to her, reminding her of hot chocolate and chimney fire and dives in the lake. The Head Girl felt the adrenaline recede, exhaustion from her run seeping into her bones and mind. She blinked a few times and wrenched her eyes wide open to remind her body to stay alert.

Hermione held up a hand to see how dark it had gotten. She still could make out everything, but the colours had long faded out. As she peered at the object she was holding, at the beautiful floral print with golden ornaments, her brain started working again in the manner she was accustomed to. At that moment, she could have hit herself for her stupidity. Of course she had something useful! It was right there in her hand.

She pulled the lid open and stared into the little mirror. Hermione paused and thought about what this meant. He would laugh at her, mocking her for getting lost like a little child and asking _him_ of all people for help. Heck, he probably wouldn't even show up. He'd happily let her rot to death here. But again she scolded herself. Now was not the time to be proud and let this chance go. She'd have enough time to feel shame later in the safe warmth of her bed, covered by heavy blankets protecting her like an indestructible metal tank.

She tapped the glass of her Joint Mirror and watched as it broke into small ripples like the surface of water when it begins to rain.

And she prayed. _Her_. Unholy witch who never visits a church, not even on Christmas. But pray she did. She didn't quite know which god to address, so she picked several she had read about. Was Merlin considered a god? Could you pray to him? She'd have to look that up, she made a mental note. She really was desperate, so she prayed to him anyway and begged to be saved.

"What?" broke a grumpy voice her ignominious prayers.

"Malfoy!" Hermione cried out, relieved and a bit too loud, so she ducked her head and looked around fearfully. He seemed impatient and shot her a glare. "Malfoy, I- I'm lost. I need somebody to find me. You need to go to Harry, tell him I'm in the forest."

"Listen, I'm not your lackey. Talk to your mighty saviour yourself."

"I'm not kidding!"

"So now you think you can order me around? Think again, Mudblood."

She cringed. "Okay, I'm sorry. But I'm not ordering you, I'm asking you to help me."

"Doesn't sound like it to me," he replied, slowly shutting his mirror.

"Wait! Wait. _Please,_ " Hermione started to cry, and it was hard to form words in her tight throat. "I'm _begging_ you. Help me. I'm lost." The tears shook her body again and it had started raining. Little raindrops rolled parallel to the tears down her hair and fell on her neck. She cringed and whimpered uncomfortably at the cold sensation. Hermione wished for her wand to cast a warming charm and something to repel the rain.

Malfoy said nothing for a moment, just looking at her, and she felt like just closing the little mirror and lying down to die.

"Are you crying, Granger?" he asked.

She shook her head, but more tears welled up, and she had to bite her lip to keep quiet.

He sighed. "How do you propose I get into Gryffindor Tower and to Potter at this time? It's not like I'm welcome there when the sun is up. It'd be my death to waltz in at night."

"Just- I don't know. Just do anything, please," she begged whispering.

"Where are you?"

"Don't know… somewhere in the Forbidden Forest. I- I ran p-pretty far, I think," she hiccupped.

"What are you doing in the bloody forest? Can't you just use your wand?" he sounded impatient now, yet begrudgingly resigned, as thought an idea just occurred to him that he really wasn't looking forward to.

"I lost it," Hermione sniffed.

"Alright." He seemed to be moving now, his image shaking in the little glass. "Just- stay put, okay?"

"Okay," she nodded.

Malfoy was getting help. Someone would come. Harry would find her. Hope exploded like a bomb in her chest, and she shut her eyes for a moment to plunge in the relief. She wiped at her cheeks, looking back at the little mirror. The image of Malfoy's face was gone, he must have closed it again. Strangely, she would have preferred it if he had continued to talking to her. Just so she wouldn't feel alone. It was so damn _scary_!

Thus, Hermione waited. Slowly, the silhouettes of the trees melted into the blackness of the night. She wondered if anyone would even be able to find her in this darkness. Hermione began to question her choice of asking Malfoy for help. She bet he climbed the Hogwarts stairs at a leisurely pace. Except, she couldn't picture that, because he never walked leisurely. He always made long, determined strides, always walking with purpose. In every step swung the ancestral pride that was etched into his very heart.

Hermione got lost in that thought. Everything was better than thinking about what was around her, what was crawling the ground, what was wheezing and rustling the leaves. It could have been herself, she wasn't sure. Instead, she focused on the image of Malfoy walking through the castle halls, waking the portrait of the chatty Sir Cadogan. The clumsy knight with his fat pony would promise to alert Harry and run ahead. He would jump from frame to frame, only to take the wrong turn and forget his initial aim, when coming across a pretty lady weaving floral wreaths. But Malfoy would know not to trust his flimsy persona and continue up to the tower, wouldn't he? He would reach the portrait of the Fat Lady just in time to see someone opening it and call after them. They would argue, wouldn't let him inside, and Malfoy would rant and threaten them. Finally, they would send out Harry, as he'd demanded and then Harry would know. Her Harry would come to find her, save her.

He should have been here by now. He should have called for her, and Hermione would have heard it. But it stayed silent. The dense blanket of clouds slowly opened up, revealing a sliver of the silver moon. It's eerie light created distorted shadows and shapes among the trees. Hermione started rocking forwards and backwards slowly. She was _freezing_!

Suddenly, she heard leaves crumble to her right, and she quickly ducked her head lower. She could just barely make out something in the pale moonlight. It was large and moved slowly in her direction. She held her breath.

'Not now. Please not now,' Hermione begged silently. 'Harry will be here any minute now.' Just a few minutes longer and she'd be saved.

Her muscles were cramped from crouching down so long, but now they were flooded with blood and stretched to the breaking point, ready to jump into action.

The creature advanced slowly in Hermione's direction. It was strangely hunched, a limb sticking out at an odd angle, it was huge! She couldn't make out its whole form which was obscured by the surrounding bushes. Just the torso towered over the dense vegetation. Then it moved behind a tree, and she couldn't see it at all. The witch stretched her neck to catch another glimpse. She couldn't see it! Where was it? Hermione's heart beat rapidly, the sound of it drumming in her ears.

Suddenly, the creature was there again, much closer than it should be. Hermione let out a frightened shriek and bolted from her hiding place.

'Run, run, _run_!' her brain cried. Run she did!

The forest did everything it could to stop her. Vines clung to her arms and thorns tore her skin. Roots coiled under her feet and scrubs cut off her way. But she had to go. She had to run. It was there, right behind her!

"Granger! Bloody hell. Stop already!"

The hell she would!

Then it reached her and grabbed her arms. She was shoved painfully against a tree, but Hermione would not give up. Harry would have heard her scream. He would come as quickly as he could. So she clawed at the creature and kicked and struggled as hard as she could. Only survival was on her mind.

Suddenly, her head was hurled to the side and her cheek burned. The beast shook her, holding her by her shoulders and shouting at her.

"It's me! Fucking stop hitting me, Granger."

She sucked in her breath and halted. In front of her was no beast. Well, no beast with a beastly body at least.

"Malfoy?"

"Who the fuck else would I be?"

"You- what. You _hit_ me!" Hermione raised a hand to her still stinging cheek. She couldn't believe it! He had really hit her. Her face burned, it had hurt like hell!

"Oh, what a shame! You nearly tore my eyes out, fucking bint," Malfoy growled.

"What are you doing here? You scared the hell out of me," Hermione was outraged and still gasped for air, feeling trapped against the tree by his body so close to hers. She pushed him away and he reluctantly stepped aside, not taking his eyes off her, ready to fend off another assault from her side.

"You asked for help, didn't you?" he ground out, looking furious.

"I asked you to fetch Harry!"

"Well, getting your fucking saviour Potter is not my fucking job!" he started to rant. "You get bloody lost and I come outside and march into this blasted forest in the middle of the flipping night to save your sorry arse and you are just as bloody thankful as I expected!"

She reeled back at his language. "I just… I wasn't expecting _you,_ " she shot him an angry look.

"So you run away? Want to get even more lost?" he asked exasperated.

"I didn't recognize you! You could have been some _monster_ that wanted to eat me alive from the inside out and just leave my skin behind or something awful like that!"

He pulled a face, "Eww... you've got some vivid imagination there."

"Well, you start to imagine your death at some point if you're in the middle of a scary forest," she defended herself with crossed arms.

"Except you aren't," he suddenly looked smug.

"What?"

"You aren't in the middle, we're quite close to the lake actually."

"You're kidding," she suddenly felt really heavy and sagged back against the tree. Right by the lake!

"Come on, I don't want to stay here all night. It's bloody cold," he ushered her back to the castle. He was right. Just a minute into the right direction, and they reached the lake. Hermione felt like crying out of sheer frustration.

"Wait," she stopped Malfoy.

"What now?" he groaned.

"I lost my wand, remember? You have to- can you just, I don't know, summon it?"

He quirked an eyebrow at her, but got out his wand and _accioed_ hers.

Strangely, something started to tug at Hermione's boot. Before she could contemplate it, her wand shot out of the shaft and into Malfoy's hand. Her cheeks were pretty much glowing in the dark. Hermione quietly took it, turned around and practically ran from him in her disgrace.

"What a bloody nuisance," she heard Malfoy swear behind her, but she didn't stop until she had reached her bed, where she curled into a small ball, hoping to never to wake up again and face her shame.

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Why? Why had she asked _him_ of all people for help? Hermione groaned and turned around in her bed, pulling the sheets above her head to hide from the world and the humiliation she felt. Crookshanks however, didn't care for her sentiments and pawed her relentlessly, kneading his claws through her sheets into her until he found a comfortable spot to lie down. Hermione really didn't want to get up, but she gently shoved her ginger cat off of her. Malfoy would mock her in front of anyone about how she had cried and got lost like a child and hadn't used her wand like the stupid Muggle she was. It was pure agony anticipating the laughs she would receive from the Slytherins. She really hated herself right now.

Boy, was she angry! How dare Ron be so mean to her and leave her all alone so late at night. How dare he! Hermione threw off the blankets in a rapid angry motion and got up, fuelled by the rage inside her. They didn't need her? Well, _she_ didn't need them! She never had friends when growing up before Hogwarts, so she'd get along on her own quite well. Who needs friends anyhow? When school was over, they probably wouldn't stay friends for long anyway. Once everyone was settled into their new life with a fulltime job and family, nobody would have time for each other anymore. Hermione would come out on top, because she'd already come to terms with it. She was prepared. She wasn't living on illusions of never ending friendship and fun. Brushing her wild hair angrily, Hermione pulled out more strands than usually but didn't really care. She would show them, they couldn't go anywhere without her!

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 **Next Chapter:**

 **"** **I didn't know you loved being lonely so much!" Ron spat.**

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 **How do you like it? Was the Halloween episode scary?  
**  
 _Much love goes to the people that helped me with this chapter, especially KoolStoryBro13 (my most loyal beta reader since the beginning of the story) and Amaxe (for extensive feedback and never-ending patience with my bad grammar). A big thanks to Antoinette Dubarry as well for supporting me for the first chapters!_ _ **  
**_


	6. She's Rejected

**Hello everybody!**

Another chapter is ready, even a bit earlier than I planned :)

 **Big thanks to my wonderful betas KoolStoryBro13 and Amaxe! You are the best!** **Check them out, they both write their own stories as well!**

 **Thank you to the loyal readers that have reviewed and shared their thoughts with me! Especially, I want to mention Lucy Grang3r because she writes a wonderful story herself that I fell in love with instantly and I can only recommend it to you: The Apprenticeship.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **How dare Ron being so mean to her, leaving her all alone so late at night! They didn't need her? Well, she didn't need them! She would show them, they wouldn't go anywhere without her!**

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Hermione was annoyed. She had enough of her peers asking basic questions because they were simply too idle to look them up on their own. How handy for them that Hermione seemed to know everything! They weren't willing to lift a finger for their homework. They came to her for convenience, not for knowledge. Not for explanation. Not even for her as a person! They came, because they were lazy. Because opening their textbooks was a task too bothersome and the way to the library was too far. They interrupted her blissful peace to ask the easiest things.

"Hermione, what do you add to a Calming Draught to turn it into a Sleeping Potion?"

"Do you know when the Goblin War ended?"

"How do you differentiate between a Hippogriff and a Manticore?"

"Can you break down this Arithmancy formula for me?"

'No! You can do it yourself!' she wanted to shout at them. Sighing, the witch ran her hands over her face and tried to calm down. She braced her elbows on her office desk tiredly.

Just yesterday Ron had really had the gall to come to _her_ for help. After what he had said to her on Halloween! After ignoring her through three whole meals in the Great Hall. He had just come up to her and Harry sitting at a table in the library. She had explained to her friend for the third time what happened if you added Fluxweed Oil to Calming Draught, before waiting for the water to boil, when the redhead had approached them.

"Hermione, can I borrow your notes on History?" Ron had asked her, interrupting her mid sentence. She bristled at his rudeness. He marched around like the world was only there to serve him!

"Didn't you write your own?" she questioned him without looking up from Harry's notes.

"You know I didn't." Accusation swung in his voice. He expected her to feel bad about Halloween night and help him out of guilt. Hell, he could shove that!

"Well, then that's your problem," Hermione shrugged.

"Will you at least tell me which pages to read?" he asked exasperated, like _she_ was the one acting like a petulant child! Harry looked between his friends uncomfortably.

"No Ron," she looked up at the redhead. "I'm not helping you study. For that matter, I'm not helping any of you anymore," she added annoyed and got up.

Harry looked at her, his face morphing into slight panic, which Hermione deliberately ignored. She really didn't need to get a guilty conscience now. If she didn't act now, she'd never show Ron just what she thought about his behaviour.

"So you'd rather learn on your own than help a friend from time to time? I didn't know you loved being lonely so much!" Ron spat.

"For you information, I am not learning alone! I have a study partner who is capable of understanding the material himself and can even open a book on his own!"

He scoffed, "Yeah, of course you do. Who'd ever want to study with you? You couldn't let anyone do something on their own anyhow, because you always need to know everything better. No one likes a know-it-all, you know?"

No, she didn't know, because she had stopped listening to his childish rants. She never knew how desperately Ron needed her help to pass his classes. Judging from his anger he really was screwed without her.

'Well, he's got to pull himself out of that mess on his own now,' Hermione thought flippantly, as she shouldered her belongings and left the library.

Theodore Nott suddenly appeared from between one of the shelves. "Having a little lover's quarrel, Granger?" he asked and followed her to the exit.

Hermione ignored him, but was stopped in her tracks when Malfoy entered the library, when she was about to pull the doors open herself.

'Can't they leave me alone for one single day?' She looked up at the blond Slytherin challengingly, waiting for the insult or mocking. He hadn't so much as uttered a word about the forest incident, and she wished he would just get over with it, so she could finally forget her disgrace.

"Granger just broke up with her boyfriend, Draco. We should cheer her up, don't you think?" Nott explained to his friend, standing behind Hermione.

"I don't have time for this," Hermione spat and shouldered past the blond git, blocking her way.

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After that episode, she didn't meet with any of her friends to study anymore. Ron tried to corner her again to guilt her into helping Harry and him, but she refused. She refused to eat together with her fellow Gryffindors in the Great Hall as well, because she couldn't stand the angry glances Ron shot her, when he was not outright ignoring her. Hermione even refused to watch their Quidditch match against Slytherin in the first week of November, the last one for Gryffindor that year. Even Malfoy seemed surprised about her, sitting on the couch in their common room, burrowed in a book about Ancient Magical Architecture, when he left for the match. He was dressed in his green and grey Quidditch gear with protectors on arms and legs and held his Nimbus in a firm grip.

"Won't you come and cheer for your favourite seeker?" he asked her sceptically, leaning over the back of the couch to peek into her book.

"Harry will manage just as well without me on the crowded stands, where I would be just one of hundred students cheering for him to catch the snitch," she remarked, covering the page he was attempting to read.

"Who said we're talking about Potty here?" he grinned mischievously and leaned back again.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at his unusual playfulness. "Did you ingest a drop of _Felix Felicis_ by chance?" she questioned him. "I think I've never seen you so cheerful and I _have_ seen your face, when you bragged about poor Buckbeak getting beheaded because of you."

"What if I did?" he smirked, and she got the feeling that he really might have had a sip of the valuable as well as highly illegal golden potion.

"Then I'll hit you. That wiped the grin off your face once already. I bet it works just as well the second time."

Malfoy glowered at that. It didn't seem to be a memory he was as fond of as she was. Hermione smiled. Who would have thought Malfoy could manage to raise her mood today?

"Off with you, Head Boy!" she sent him on his way. "You don't want to miss your match, do you? I'll promise to cross my fingers for you to lose," she added sweetly.

"Why, thanks, Granger!" he sneered and left.

The Head Girl watched the Mirror Entrance shimmer, until it's surface was smooth again.

'That was strange,' Hermione thought, as she scratched Crookshanks, who had jumped on her lap and pushed off her book in the process, behind his ears.

The Gryffindor Team won the match, judging Malfoy's bad mood when he returned hours later and the gloominess he radiated the following days. Hermione decided it was safer to stay clear of him, otherwise he might get the idea that it was somehow _her_ fault that Harry hat beaten him in catching the snitch.

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Ron thought that she didn't have anyone to study with beside him and Harry. But Hermione really didn't care what he thought, because she already knew whom to ask to be her study partner from now on. He even shared her ambition and intellect.

They had agreed to meet at four in the afternoon in the library, so she went there half an hour early to prepare and get the books she needed.

"Wow, you're early," he greeted her fifteen minutes later.

"Hi Ernie," the Gryffindor acknowledged her study partner and made space next to her for him to take a seat. He unpacked his books and three thick folders of notes.

"You are quite ambitious for a Hufflepuff," she smiled, as she noticed his lengthy notes.

"Actually, I'm not very good with stress so I like to prepare in advance," he shrugged his shoulders and flipped his Potions book to the chapter they were supposed to prepare.

"I'm thriving on stress really!" Hermione laughed, fiddling with her quill. Strangely, her cheeks heated when Ernie looked up at her.

"Yeah, I guess that's why you became Head Girl," he said.

"You think so?" Suddenly she became self-conscious, because she always assumed the reason for gaining her position was because of her exemplary marks.

"Well, looking at Malfoy, he's not bad at school, but he is pro at managing stressful situations, isn't he?" Ernie asked and pulled out a fresh parchment.

"Maybe…" she trailed off and then decided not to think into the matter further but turned back to her work instead.

* * *

Ernie Macmillan proved to be a good study partner. He didn't ask questions you could answer with a quick look in a book and shared some noteworthy ideas about their tasks and topics.

They started meeting daily after lessons, sometimes until the library closed at seven. Madam Pince had to throw them out several times, critically jingling with her key ring, signalling that it was time for her to lock the doors.

When Ernie and Hermione had a streak with their runes translation and were nearing the closure of the library, Hermione invited the Hufflepuff to come to her common room to continue working on their homework for another hour or two and he agreed.

She felt a bit excited at having him over, because she usually didn't have any visits except from her friends, and for the last weeks only Harry had been there from time to time. Even before her fight with Ron, the two of them usually preferred to meet somewhere else. They felt uneasy around Malfoy, and the jerk insisted on sitting in the common room until her friends left again. Afterwards the Slytherin often had something to do all of sudden and would leave as well.

Hermione also felt excited, because she actually got along with Ernie quite well. He didn't deem her too studious or not sociable enough. He wasn't a complete loner, as Hufflepuffs tended to hang out together frequently, but he was more drawn inward and quiet, listening and observing. She liked that about him.

To her chagrin Malfoy occupied the common room when they entered, sitting at the table in the middle and doing his own homework. Surprisingly, he moved to make way for them. The Slytherin shooed off Hermione's cat from the couch and sat at the fireplace with his back turned towards them. Hermione would have preferred him to be completely absent, but that would have to do, she guessed.

After Ernie and Hermione had managed to finish their translation work within two hours, the Hufflepuff got up and started packing his stuff.

"Ernie, would you like to go to Hogsmeade sometime?" Hermione asked as casually as possible, leaning her elbows on table top to support her head with her hands and look up at him.

"Actually, I'm quite busy with schoolwork, and for the next scheduled weekend I'll go out with my friends," he answered, looking down at her.

"Oh," she said. "Well, we can do something else as well. I'm not such a fan of Hogsmeade myself. I know all the shops inside out already," Hermione smiled.

He halted his movements, before answering her, after he had screwed the lid on his inkpot. "Hermione, I like studying with you, but I really want to concentrate on that. My grades are very important to me and my parents, and I don't want to be distracted," he excused himself in a serious tone and slung the strap of his packed back over his shoulder.

"Alright," she said quietly and followed him to the mirror subdued. "Well, good night then, Ernie."

He turned around. "Tomorrow in the library again?" he asked, and she smiled and nodded.

Her smile faded slowly as he left. That wasn't what she had expected. She felt disappointment at his rejection. Had it been a rejection per se? He had said he liked her. No, she corrected herself. He liked studying with her. He liked it because they were good at it, not because of her. He didn't wish to hang out with her like friends did, or as anything else than friends for that matter.

She turned back towards the common room to find Malfoy having gotten up from the couch grinning maddeningly at her. Hermione could have sunken into the ground right there. She had totally forgotten about his presence.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"You broke the deal, Granger," he growled.**

::::::::::::

 **Poor Hermione :( How did you like the scene before the Quidditch Match? It's bordering on flirty, isn't it? :D**

 **I've edited the cover image a bit, how do you like it? Thank you TheQuietAwakening for recommending me the app!**


	7. She's Stressed

**14.02.: Chapter 1 and 2 have been rewritten! They desperately needed it and I have been struggling with this for so long! The plot doesn't change so you won't miss anything if you don't want to reread them, but they are hopefully a bit more interesting with added conflicts and more insight into Hermione :) Maybe I'll have a look at chapter 3 again, don't know yet.**

 **Thank you Nora Fares for helping me *.* 3** __

 _This chapter is dedicated my loyal fans who take their time to review every chapter! Thank you to **Lucy Grang3r** , **The Quiet Awakening** and a special thanks with confetti thrown and cheerleaders dancing in the background while I hand her a huge bouquet of flowers goes to **Nora Fares**! She did the new cover image and some more. I honestly can't believe that anyone actually would create **fan art** for my story! I created a tumblr. To show you all the awesome artwork and designs she did for me ( **Link: goo . gl/vaBcPm** )! Check out her Dramione **Enigma** as well! It's masterfully written. She's as talented at creating designs and writing stories as Hermione is at learning new spells!_

 _Special thanks goes to my beta **KoolStoryBro13**! I don't know what I'd do without you :')_

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **She turned back towards the common room to find Malfoy having gotten up from the couch grinning maddeningly at her. Hermione could have sunken into the ground right there.**

* * *

"Poor Granger just got turned down!" he beamed.

"Shut it, stupid jerk," she said angrily, quickly collecting her stuff from the table and picking up Crookshanks, before fleeing into her room. Tears threatened to spill, not from the rejection, but from shame of Malfoy mocking her yet again.

"Not so stupid to get lost on the edge of a forest and forgetting to use my wand." He was clearly entertained. "Remember to stay in your room tomorrow!" Malfoy called after her, still laughing. "My friends will be here until midnight."

* * *

The next day, she did meet with Ernie in the library again and she was relieved to slip back into their studying routine easily. However, Hermione was distracted in her search for a particular book when she spotted Harry and Ron sharing a table in the Potions section. She halted in her tracks on the way to the shelf she had intended to approach. Hermione quickly stepped behind the one next to her. Through the gap between book spines and the massive, dark wood of the shelf, she watched Harry pointing at a paragraph in the book that he and Ron had flipped open on the table between them.

Turning around abruptly, Hermione made her way back to the table she shared with Ernie before her friends could notice her.

"Didn't find it?" Ernie asked, looking up as she plopped into the chair beside him.

Hermione turned to him confused, "Hm?"

"The book, _Potions in the 19th Century_. Did you find it?"

"Oh," she quickly caught herself and mentally shook her head to get her thoughts in order once again. "No - I, uhm… it was already checked out of the library by someone else."

Hermione knew that it had been _her_ decision to no longer learn with her friends, but somehow she still felt betrayed by their presence here without her. Harry and Ron had never before learned in the library without Hermione urging them to do their homework. Now all of sudden they did exactly that of their own accord.

"Well, I suppose we can work with what we already have, right?" Ernie remarked.

Hermione nodded absentmindedly. Unable to let this matter rest, she couldn't manage to concentrate on her work or Ernie's questions and observations. She was also dreading the evening, so she retired early to complete the remainder of the homework in the confines of her bedroom while the Slytherins occupied the common room. She regretted sacrificing her freedom for that stupid evening with Ron, but she concluded that Malfoy would have his friends over regardless. There wasn't much she could do about that.

* * *

Locked into her bedroom and surrounded by books, Hermione managed to finish her school work in no time and moved on to write a letter to Molly Weasley, asking if she could stay at the Burrow over Christmas. She knew that Malfoy wasn't allowed to go home and there was no way that she would stay in the empty castle with him. Her heart did a painful little jerk when she thought about where she actually wanted to go for Christmas. Knowing that the Burrow was her only option to escape Hogwarts and therefore Malfoy, Hermione signed her name with a flourish and addressed the envelope. Later, when the common room would be empty again, she planned to take a night walk to send it. Her body craved her nightly stroll through the castle and it would feel good to walk up all the way to the Owlery and breathe some fresh air.

Having finished her tasks for the day, Hermione browsed through one of her favourite books lazily, but she couldn't manage to summon enough motivation to actually read it. Instead, she looked for the passages she cherished most and skipped the more descriptive sections. This method of reading somehow dampened the impact of the more interesting lines. Hermione got quite frustrated when she didn't feel her heart skip a beat at one of the more exciting passages, like it would have if she had read properly. After a while, she gave up and tried to sleep.

Hermione's eyes nervously flicked to her watch on the bed stand for the fifth time. She had been lying in bed wide-awake for nearly an hour now, unable to even close her eyes. She looked at the watch again.

11:55

Malfoy had said that his friends would stay until midnight. Hermione mentally added ten minutes for the last of them to leave. Impatiently, she tossed and turned and just couldn't stay put. She needed to move! She was desperate for a little walk through the castle to calm her nerves and to fall into a peaceful slumber after returning to her warm and comfortable bed. Hermione walked at night so frequently, that her body had become used to it by now.

The seconds ticked by slowly as Hermione stared at the ceiling. A soft chime informed her of the hands on her clock uniting to point at midnight. Hermione inhaled deeply, trying to divert herself by concentrating on slow intakes of breath and measured exhales.

0:05

Time to put on her cloak and donned some shoes. No need to catch a cold wandering around the castle and up to the draughty Owlery.

Slowly she made her way down the narrow staircase, running her hand along the rough stones of the inner wall while listening for any noises. Hermione didn't hear any voices in the common room. Step by step, she descended the steps.

They hadn't left yet. Well, not all of them at least, she noted when she had made it all the way down to find Malfoy on the couch with a girl kissing his neck while straddling his lap.

Pulling a face, Hermione tried to be as quick and silent as possible to cross the room. Malfoy faced the fireplace and the girl was way too occupied to notice her, so Hermione couldn't fathom how he sensed her presence, but when she had nearly reached the two-sided mirror, his voice halted her.

"You broke our deal, Granger."

The girl - Hermione recognized her as the Ravenclaw Prefect Malfoy had been chatting with on Halloween - jumped startled and looked up at her in surprise.

"It's past midnight," Hermione answered through clenched teeth. Malfoy wasn't facing her, so she could only make out his profile, illuminated by the dying fire, when he turned his head slightly. "And _she_ ," Hermione emphasised, "should already be in her own dorm."

The girl pouted and looked down at Malfoy expectantly.

"Guess, she'll just have to stay here," he grinned. "Can't have her get caught sneaking back, can we?"

The Ravenclaw beamed at him and leaned down to kiss Malfoy again. Hermione harrumphed and left the common room disgusted.

The castle was so very silent that night that she lost track of time after sending a small brown owl on its way to the Burrow. In the end, Hermione wandered around the dark corridors longer than she had planned. Luckily, she knew all the hiding spots and the teachers' routes by now and didn't need Harry's map or invisibility cloak to be save from discovery. Also, she was the Head Girl no less; she'd manage to talk herself out of this situation should she ever be caught this late at night.

Hermione didn't want to acknowledge that she avoided returning too early, concerned about coming across the pair in her common room again. Her mind was occupied enough with those two at the moment. She tried to shake off the thoughts about what they were about to do.

He had let that trollop stay! Disgusting! Hermione just hoped that the girl left early enough to not come across her again.

* * *

"Care to explain why you can't stay in your room for _one_ night?" Malfoy advanced on her office desk the next day, after Hermione's consultations were over.

"You were the one who said they'd be gone by midnight," she retorted irritated.

"Well, plans change! You broke the deal! You owe me something now."

"What? As if!"

"You owe me a deed," Malfoy emphasised and put his hands on the table to lean in, threatening her with his close presence.

"Or what?" she challenged unperturbed.

"Or I'll never take over any of your tasks ever again," he growled.

"No way, what if I get ill?" Hermione huffed.

"That's your problem then, isn't it?"

"You told me they'd be gone by midnight. That was our deal - to inform me when you need the common room and when you don't!" she defended.

"It wasn't part of the deal. I agreed to it on your behalf, for your convenience," he rectified.

"The great Draco Malfoy doing something so others have it easier, I doubt that!"

Malfoy leaned back. "Would be a shame if you'd have to take care of supervising little first graders on New Year's Eve while your friends are going home for Christmas, wouldn't it?" he drawled.

Hermione blanched. "I don't have to stay at Hogwarts and I didn't sign up for supervising the youngster's party," she said unconvinced.

"Too late," he smirked. "I just finished the timetables and put your name in that time slot."

"You git!" she growled. "You knew I wouldn't agree with you on this matter!"

"Of course I did," he informed her, looking at his nails disinterested.

Hermione fumed. Malfoy was a real prick when he had the upper hand. And he had it all too often to her chagrin.

* * *

Luckily for Hermione, she managed to convince Professor McGonagall the next day that her name had been filled in for the holidays as a mistake. She permitted Hermione to obligate one of the Prefects that had elected to stay in Hogwarts for the holidays anyway to fill in her place. Still, she knew that Malfoy could be relentless if he wanted to and from then on, she was constantly on edge, expecting him to strike against her at every opportunity. Hermione couldn't bear the tension and even got the feeling that Malfoy was purposefully not acting on his threat to set her on edge even more. Letting the matter drop wasn't like him at all.

Near the end of the weekend, after Hermione had just finished her share of consultations for that Thursday, Malfoy appeared in their office as the last student was leaving. Hermione packed her bag and tried to ignore his presence as he stepped in front of her desk.

"I just wanted to let you know that my friends are staying over tonight so you better leave us alone this time," Malfoy informed her. "Unless you want any problems."

"Fine!" Hermione threw her hands in the air exasperated as he turned to leave. "I'll do it. What do you want? Just let this go already!" she demanded, clearly frustrated by her inability to hold her own against Malfoy's simple threats.

"You consent to fulfilling any request?" he asked, stopping on his way out of their office.

"As long as it is reasonable." Hermione congratulated herself for this clever addition. That would serve as an escape from her consent should he demand anything ridiculous.

Malfoy nodded. "Okay, I'll think of something."

Hermione groaned. "Can't we get this over with now?" He really wanted to torment her with this. Now, Malfoy would use this against her constantly.

He grinned evilly. "I don't want to waste my opportunity." Malfoy turned and left, ignoring her scowl.

"Something reasonable!" Hermione called after him.

* * *

From that moment on, Malfoy seemed to have his friends over day in day out. Hermione had enough of the Slytherins' comments on her every move - she didn't want to lock herself away in her room all the time. Even Crookshanks was getting tired of her constant company and had chipped off to hunt small birds and not so small rats. He liked to place them on her pillows as a souvenir.

Hermione decided that she couldn't hang out in the library her whole life either, so she made her way to the Gryffindor Common Room. It was an early evening and the last students still strolled the castle, but most had already decided to flee the cool corridors and had retreated to their warm common rooms.

When she entered the cosy atmosphere of the Gryffindor Tower, it encompassed her instantly, making Hermione feel at home again. She hadn't realized how much she had missed the warm colours and fluffy sofas. Her new common room was elegant with its classy furniture, but returning to this comfortable chaos was what she really had needed in that moment. Hermione made her way through the groups of Gryffindors, some greeting her and welcoming her back into the lion's den. Smiling and thanking them, she retreated into a quieter corner where she was greeted by Neville. He was in midst of a round of exploding snap with Dean Thomas and Colin Creevey. Next to them Seamus was involved in a game of wizard's chess with Ron who looked up at her briefly, opening his mouth as if he wanted to say something before shutting it again and turning away from her. Hermione ignored the little stab she felt in her chest at his rejection.

"Wanna join in?" Colin asked her with his usual cheeriness. Hermione sat down with a huge smile, grateful for the distraction. Oh, how she had missed this!

They were in their third round when a commotion erupted from the stairs leading to the dorms.

"Not _now_ , Ginny!" Harry said impatiently while storming into the common room.

"You never make time for me anymore. You either are with Dumbledore or hanging around the library, but never do you have time for _us_! You are turning into bloody Hermione!" she yelled after him. By now the whole room had gone silent with everyone's eyes glued on the pair.

"That's because this isn't only about you! It's about _my_ life, what _I_ want to do with it. I won't have any options to choose from, if I don't improve my grades and that takes time! If you can't understand how important that is for me then maybe you are not so important yourself!" Harry shouted. He froze briefly, staring into Ginny's wide eyes, before raking his hands through his already tousled hair. He turned around abruptly, dodging Gryffindors left and right on his way to the exit.

Falling out of her state of shock, Hermione looked at Ron reflexively. He had always been there for Harry when he had problems, understanding him better than Hermione knew the library. Ron, however, seemed torn between running after his best friend and being angry at the boy who had just broken up with his little sister. When he caught Hermione's gaze he seemed to come to a decision and turned back to his chess game with Seamus, frowning at his tower dragging one of his opponent's pawns off the board. Hermione huffed, letting her hand of cards drop on the table and followed after Harry.

"Harry!" She had to catch the Portrait of the Fat Lady that was already swinging shut behind the troubled young man. "Harry, wait for me. Please," Hermione called after him, having a hard time keeping up with his pace. "What did you just _do_ , Harry?!" she asked, when she finally fell into step beside him.

"I just broke up with Ginny, I guess." Harry didn't stop walking, so Hermione hurried to keep up with him. After taking a flight of stairs and several sharp turns, Harry headed for a hidden alcove a floor below their tower and plopped down on the windowsill, exhausted. Closing his eyes briefly, he leaned against the castle walls, letting his head drop against the cool glass.

"You shouldn't just throw away what you have with Ginny," Hermione said, shaking her head.

He looked up at her exasperatedly.

"Let me help you. Please talk to me. I can help you to figure this out," she begged.

"No, you can't! You can't always do everything right, Hermione. You don't know how to fix this. You have no _clue_ how relationships work!"

Hermione reeled back from his harsh words. "Why do you say that?" she asked hurt.

"Because it's true," he frowned, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes tiredly. "Look how you screwed up with Ron again and again."

"But that wasn't my fault!"

"Wasn't it?" he asked calmly. Hermione couldn't believe what he was saying. She shook her head fiercely when he didn't add anything else, not even to defend his statement.

"Just… leave me alone for a bit, Hermione. I need to figure this out on my own," he asked of her, but she already hurried to get away so he wouldn't see her tears.

Harry's words had stung. Ginny's words had stung, but their breakup broke her heart. They were meant to be, weren't they? They had been through so much. They couldn't just let each other go because of some stupid school grades! When Hermione realized what she had just thought, she began to cry, frantically wiping tears the whole way down into the dungeons. Luckily for her, the students had returned to their respective houses due to the enforced curfew.

She looked for a safe haven in their common room, but of course _he_ was there.

"Granger?"

Hermione tried to move through the room as quickly as possible, to avoid his gaze. She hated that he saw her cry.

To her horror, he stood at the bottom of the stairs and didn't think about stepping aside for one second. He even moved to block the staircase, as she tried to move around him.

"Out of my way!" she yelled.

He frowned. "Why are you crying?"

"None of your fucking business!" she cried and pushed past him quite forcefully to run up the stairs.

* * *

 **::::::::::::**

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"Don't think you are getting out of this easily," he growled at Hermione. "You're going to make this up to me. I'll make sure of that," he promised.**

* * *

 _Hermione is reaching her lowest point now._

 _She starts to really miss her friends and she is becoming a bit lonely. Even Ernie turns her down :(_

 _And Malfoy being Malfoy doesn't make her life easy as well. He and his girlfriend must be really annoying for Hermione :D What do you think? The Ravenclaw will make a reappearance in a few chapters and there will be a lot of drama!_

 _What do you think about the break up? It was so awful to write that! :O I hope you're not mad at me now :'((_

 _Let me know what you think of the fan art!_


	8. She's Down

**Chapter 1 and 2 have been rewritten!**

They really needed it and I have been struggling with this for so long! The plot doesn't change so you won't miss anything if you don't want to reread them, but they are hopefully a bit more interesting with added conflicts and more insight into Hermione :) Maybe I'll have a look at chapter 3 again, don't know yet. Thank you Nora for providing your editing skills :}

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

He frowned. "Why are you crying?"

"None of your fucking business!" she cried and pushed past him quite forcefully to run up the stairs.

* * *

Hermione felt like she had failed her friends. It was devastating. Her friends were meant to be happy, to be successful in life, to reach their goals and fulfil their wishes. That's what she wanted for them, that's what made her happy and kept her going. Now she was useless. She couldn't help them.

Unable to distract herself from her misery, Hermione pulled her sheets above her head. The sun had already risen high enough to illuminate her room with uncomfortable brightness. She could have gotten up to draw the curtains, but Hermione just couldn't be bothered with that. Instead, she turned, rolling into a ball and staring into the stifling darkness under her blanket.

She desperately wanted to fall back asleep, craving the blissful nothingness it offered. Instead, she had been awake for hours now. She hadn't bothered to look at her clock, but she had waited an eternity before the sky had slowly brightened up. All the while she was exhausted, emotionally and physically. Her body begged for rest but her mind just wasn't able to shut down.

Hermione knew that she probably should get up to go down for breakfast, but despite her painfully empty stomach, she couldn't muster the strength to leave her bed. She waited. She didn't know for what exactly, she didn't really care.

Hermione was in a state of deep and depressing thoughts when Malfoy banged on her door. "Granger!" he demanded her presence. "Where are you?! Are you going to fucking leave me to deal with the Prefects' meeting on my own?"

She ignored him. Didn't he know she had other things to worry about? Well, she supposed he didn't care whatever she was dealing with.

"Fucking useless Mudblood," she heard him rant, when she didn't respond. He could call her anything he wanted. Hermione didn't care. She had other problems right now and she couldn't deal with them. She was just so tired. Crookshanks head-butted her several times and meowed loudly but Hermione just pushed her Familiar away.

* * *

Later, when Hermione couldn't stand looking at her bedroom walls any longer, she scooped up Crookshanks and trotted downstairs, confident that Malfoy was away, doing whatever he usually did on a Saturday afternoon. She settled down on the wide ledge of the large gothic window in their common room.

Holding her cat close to her chest, Hermione tried to counter the chill seeping into her bones from the stone sill she was sitting on. She stared into the murky lake. The sunrays were refracted artfully, as the window was right below the surface, but the muddy water made it look dull and dirty. Just like Hermione's mind felt dull and dirty, muddled with self-doubt and desperation that were muted by an encompassing bleakness.

Early in the evening, Malfoy came back, but Hermione just cast a charm to mum all noises around herself windowsill and turned back to continue staring out into the lake. She didn't however expect him to counter her spell, barging in her personal space like he did just moments later.

"Don't you dare silence me again!" Malfoy growled.

Hermione just looked at him without reacting. Then, she slowly came back to her conscious self, emerging from the recess of her mind that her worries had pulled her into.

"Why are you back already?" she asked confused and put her ginger cat, which had been purring at her chest, down on the floor.

"Why I'm back already?" Malfoy ranted. "I demand that you do your Head tasks! You can't expect me to take them over just because you are in some mood or whatever it is that drives you to lock yourself up in here!"

"I'm busy," she told him off.

"Busy doing what? Petting your beast of a cat? It's Saturday! There are no classes, there is no homework, there is only our meeting that you were supposed to prepare!" he threw his hands into the air exasperated.

"What meeting?" Hermione frowned. "The meeting!" She jumped from her place on the windowsill and ran over to their sofas were she had carelessly dropped her notes and bag the day before. Crookshanks hissed, startled by her sudden movement and bolted from the room.

Malfoy looked at her strangely. "What now? Hurry up! We'll be late, Malfoy!" she told him sternly.

"The meeting is over, Granger," he told her. Staring at the Slytherin, Hermione tried to process what he had just said. "Are you going insane now?" Malfoy actually seemed to be a bit frightened which made her laugh. "Crazy lunatic," he shook his head and took a step back when she walked towards the table where he was standing. "You stay away from me, Mudblood!" he told her and kept her at arms length.

Hermione stopped and looked at him. "Don't be silly, Malfoy. Bring me up to date, won't you? Let's sit down and tell me what you discussed in today's meeting. I can't afford to miss anything." She pushed past him pulled out a chair with Malfoy reluctantly following her example, standing awkwardly opposite to her, the table between them.

"Don't think you are getting out of this easily," he growled at Hermione. "You're going to make this up to me. I'll make sure of that."

"Whatever," she said, spreading her notes for the Prefects' meeting on their table.

Malfoy didn't sit down like she did. He kept standing, still keeping a safe distance as if Hermione was contagious.

"Well, what did you discuss in the meeting?" she asked impatiently.

He shrugged, "Just filled them in on their rounds. We postponed the rest to tomorrow after breakfast, actually."

She narrowed her eyes. "So you didn't hold a real meeting at all? What are you complaining about then?"

"Maybe I'm complaining because I didn't have a _clue_ what we were supposed to discuss as you had all our notes for the meeting? Maybe I'm complaining because I had to listen to whiny little Prefects bitch about working on Sunday! For the record, I would have preferred to spend tomorrow without chores, as well!" he ranted.

"Okay, okay! Calm down, will you? I apologise. I should have been there," she granted him with a frown. No need to shout at her like he did right now.

"Indeed. You should have," he affirmed, still sore.

"So, tomorrow it is?" Hermione enquired.

"At eleven."

"I'll be there," she promised and crept away, back to her room.

Hermione panicked a little, when she had closed the door behind her and leaned against it. What was _wrong_ with her?! How could she have let herself go like that for a whole day? That had been so unlike her. Hermione had pretended to be calm and collected in front of Malfoy, but inside she was greatly confused and shaken. She had totally drawn in on herself and had locked out the world around her completely. She really needed to solve this problem, or she might return to this state, which really frightened her, now that she was shaken out of it. Hermione didn't want to admit it to herself, but she was a bit thankful for Malfoy's intruding persona. She didn't believe light probing would have gotten her to come out of her little depressive and self-destructive episode.

* * *

The next day, Hermione was back to her usual self. At least, she worked as much as possible to not allow her brain the break to shut down again. Getting up as early as six, she rewrote her Herbology essay just to put more effort in a neat and organized script and layout. Afterwards, she had a brief breakfast. She met neither Ron nor Harry, who both usually slept in as long as possible, but Hermione knew that she would see Ron later at the Prefects meeting. She definitely wasn't looking forward to that.

Hermione quickly shoved toast and scrambled eggs down her throat, washing it down with still scalding hot tea. Ginny sat across from her with red, puffy eyes, but Hermione ignored her resolutely for the sake of her own mental stability. Instead, Hermione picked up the newspaper to shield herself from the sight of the depressed girl and briefly skimmed the Daily Prophet's main issue depicting a portrait of Lucius Malfoy.

 _Death Eater on the run – sightings near the Nott Estate_ , it read.

Hermione shook her head. They still hadn't managed to capture that foul man. Even Sirius had been hunted by more forces. After eating in record time, Hermione made her way back to her room to prepare for the meeting by organizing her notes and planning the order in which the different topics were to be discussed. Then, she impatiently waited for the clock to turn to eleven, but she still had two hours left. She cleaned up her own room as well as the bathroom and afterwards their common room. No way she would leave all the work to the House-Elves, those poor creatures were working hard enough even without her adding to their chores. Malfoy looked uneasily at Hermione's frantic shuffling around but didn't comment on it and hid behind his issue of the Daily Prophet instead. Hermione briefly wondered what he knew about his father's whereabouts.

When it was finally time for the meeting, she made her way to the Head Students' office where they were coming together with Malfoy in tow. Hermione greeted the Prefects and apologised for missing the initially scheduled meeting. She managed the affair professionally by laying out the upcoming tasks and events and leading the discussions to a satisfying agreement about how rounds had to be redistributed to accommodate everyone's needs and after school activities. She left the organization of the next Quidditch matches to Malfoy who was in charge of that topic being an active member of the Slytherin team himself. Ron didn't even look in her direction the whole meeting, she noticed with a lump in her throat.

After the meeting, Hermione tried to catch up with Ron, but she was held back by one of the younger Slytherin Prefects and therefore had no chance to follow him.

"How can I help you?" she asked the young Slytherin girl fidgeting before her, instead of chasing after her friend. Usually, the Slytherins preferred to sort out their affairs with Malfoy, but he was still preparing the timetables for Quidditch training. They didn't trust Hermione as a Gryffindor and some, she suspected, didn't trust her as a Muggleborn. This didn't seem to hold back the Slytherin student approaching her now however.

"I shouldn't really be here…" the dark-haired girl in front of Hermione trailed off.

"It's Sadie Baldock, right?" Hermione asked and the girl nodded. "Let's sit down, Sadie, shall we?"

Hermione waited for Sadie to get comfortable in the wooden chair while she herself took a seat in her own old-fashioned upholstered office chair behind the desk. "So, why don't you just tell me what's on your mind, and I judge whether you should be here or not?" Hermione smiled at the young Prefect encouragingly.

The Slytherin stared at her hands before she rushed out, "I've found my friends out after curfew and didn't tell on them."

Hermione knit her eyebrows together and threw a glance over at Malfoy still scribbling having proceeded to copy his notes on the meeting in a neat script.

She turned back to Sadie. "Did you scold them for their behaviour?"

"Well, yes. Kind of... They think they can bend the rules because I would never punish them or rat them out." The girl turned bright red. "I'm not a very good Prefect, am I?" she asked crestfallen, not looking at Hermione anymore but at the rutted plate of the desk between the two of them.

"No, you are a good friend. If your friends know to value that, they will respect your position and the responsibilities that come with it," Hermione replied honestly.

Sadie looked up at her with big eyes, "So you think I did nothing wrong?"

"You abused your position to grant your friends liberties. I don't know how much more wrong you can get," Hermione told the girl who turned pale at her words. "But rules are not above everything, and sometimes they do more harm than a little wrongdoing would, Sadie," Hermione added, smiling reassuringly.

The girl nodded and beamed at her.

"But that doesn't mean that I will tolerate this, you hear? If I ever catch you and your friends in the deed, I will not hesitate to give you detention until next year and your Prefects Badge will be passed onto someone else," Hermione carried on sternly.

The girl nodded again.

"Don't feel afraid to tell them that, Sadie. No one demands that you go behind your friends' backs, but no one will stand up for you like you do for them either. You should come out straight and tell them that the next time you catch them, they will have to deal with the consequences, no matter how good friends you are. Because in that moment you are both - their friend and their Prefect. You are there to enforce the rules, and you are there to care for their safety."

The girl looked chastised now, and Hermione felt a bit bad about her strict words.

"I once hid in one of the girls restrooms instead of standing up to my friends head on, you wanna know what happened?" she asked the younger Slytherin in front of her.

The girl nodded curiously.

"I was attacked by a troll, actually," Hermione grinned at Sadie's widening eyes. "Don't worry, I was saved in time by my friends. They were nearly thrown out of school for not obeying the Headmaster's instruction to go to their common room for safety. I lied on their behalf then. That's when I realized that it is not all about rules and stuff."

The girl seemed impressed and thanked Hermione before she bid her goodbye with the promise to give her friends a piece of her mind.

Hermione slouched at her desk and put her head on her arms. This was exhausting. Helping Sadie had lifted her spirits, but after she had left, Hermione felt drained and all her own problems came crashing back. Hermione was desperate to help Harry get back with Ginny and Ron's absence next to her at the Gryffindor table made all food taste hollow and stale.

Hermione felt _his_ eyes on her and tiredly looked up. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Malfoy shook his head, having finished the timetables. "You look like a troll dragged you into his cave and locked you there for weeks. That's saying something with your hair. Have you heard of that thing called sunlight?"

"Why _thanks_ , Malfoy. You must be the expert, being as pale as a vampire yourself."

He huffed but followed her out of their office to return to their common room.

Hermione didn't pay him any attention as he followed her through the halls. She thought about how Ron had completely ignored Harry's distress after fighting with Ginny. How could Ron leave his best friend alone in a situation like that? Even if this was about his sister, shouldn't he be the first one to talk Harry into apologizing and being happy again?

Ron really needed a good dressing-down. If she caught him stepping a _toe_ out of line she would give him detention until the end of the year, Hermione decided. That would teach Ron not to mess with her and to be a better friend.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

"You can never know your enemy well enough," he replied haughtily in a way so much himself that she had to smile. Somehow, it was endearing that he built this character of the malicious antagonist around himself to keep everyone at bay. **  
**

**::::::::::::**

Poor Hermione, things will look up soon, I promise :) What did you think of her helping Sadie? She finally manages to thrive in her Role as Head Girl and is able to support the students like she wants to. But her own problems are weighing down heavily.

Malfoy is even a little charming in this chapter in his own way, isn't he? :)

* * *

 **I desperately need a grammar expert!**

 **My last grammar-beta can't continue, so I need someone to stick around for at least a few chapters. I'm awful with placing commas and tend to translate some phrases from German to English literally wich doesn't work very well most times :'D. If you've got an eye for that and are up to the challenge, feel free to message me!**

 _Thanks to KoolStoryBro13 (honestly, you are the best for still sticking around and reading every chapter with care :'} ) and Nora Fares for helping me with this chapter *-*_ **  
**


	9. She's Honest

**Previously:**

 **Ron really needed a good dressing-down. If she caught him stepping a _toe_ out of line she would give him detention until the end of the year, Hermione decided. That would teach Ron not to mess with her and to be a better friend.**

* * *

Reaching the stairs to the dungeons with Malfoy, Hermione spotted Luna talking to Neville. The blonde Ravenclaw noticed her as well and gave a little wave. Promising to help Neville's search for Sea Lavender later, Luna quickly excused herself from him, sending him ahead to the lake.

"Hermione," Luna greeted her in her silvery voice. Her dreamy smile turned into a little frown and she tilted her head to one side. "Your hair is full of angry spirits. You should try to avoid feelings of strong hate and resentment. They aren't good for a heart beating in the tact of jumping Wizzfleas."

Hermione only nodded, having given up on lecturing Luna about the nonexistence of her imaginary creatures a while ago. The Ravenclaw smiled at her in her usual ruminative manner and Hermione had to swallow hard. Sometimes, she suspected that Luna knew exactly what went through her head and the girl didn't hold back to voice what she observed. Her open nature made Hermione uneasy and even though she knew that Luna never meant harm, she still managed to make Hermione feel uncomfortable in her own body.

"Draco," Luna acknowledged Malfoy who had stopped to watch the encounter between Luna and Hermione with silent curiosity. Pondering on her strange words, Hermione watched as she skipped past her through the halls.

Why had she told her to avoid hate? Hermione never hated anyone. Hate meant that you wished harm for someone. That wasn't what she wanted at all; no one deserved to suffer, no matter how evil they were. But suddenly, Hermione felt like she had swallowed a stone, her stomach becoming heavy and ice cold. She reminded herself that just a moment ago she had wished harm on her best friend. Ron had been awful to her, but how could she even think about retaliation? Hermione felt terrible. What kind of friend was she to carry such hate for the people closest to her? She truly didn't deserve them, if she harboured that much resentment.

"Well, that was strange," Malfoy remarked beside her. Hermione shook her head frowning and continued on her way with him in tow.

When she mulled over Luna's strange advice in her head, Hermione felt Malfoy's eyes on her. "Still wracking your brain over Potty's little breakup?" he asked. "Don't you dare doing that scary thing again, where you lock yourself in your room and skive off of all your duties. I dislike that Granger. Even more than the usual one," Malfoy sneered.

For the sake of her own stability of mind, Hermione ignored what he was hinting at. "Since when do _you_ care for Harry's private life?" she asked instead, rubbing at her tired eyes.

"I don't," he replied. "It's just fun seeing him all desperate about it."

"How very nice of you," she commented drily.

"No need for you to get all worked up over those lovebirds," Malfoy told her. "Don't you have your own boyfriend to worry about?" he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Ron's not…" she shrugged and groaned. "I worry about him too."

"Very talkative, today, aren't we?" he remarked snidely about her unusual sincerity with him.

Hermione huffed, "You asked."

"Yeah, but usually you ignore those kind of questions that are obviously meant to pry into your most troubling thoughts."

"Since when are you interested in my troubles?" she laughed hollowly.

"You can never know your enemy well enough," he replied haughtily in a way so much himself that she had to smile. Somehow, it was endearing that he built this character of the malicious antagonist around himself to keep everyone at bay. Malfoy eyed her facial expression uneasily, clearly having expected a harsh answer about staying out of her private affairs. He seemed pretty worried that Hermione might turn into a murderous lunatic, lately.

He shook his head at her strange conduct. "Maybe you shouldn't be trying to fix their relationship problems. It's not really your forte, isn't it?"

"You don't know a thing about my strengths!" Hermione hissed.

He shrugged, "I mean, maybe do what you're good at and start doing his homework again. He'll at least have time for his girlfriend then."

"I'm definitely _not_ doing Harry's schoolwork for him! He's capable of that on his own," she huffed.

They were silent for a while, walking alongside down a flight of stairs into the dungeons.

"I've got a better idea!" She excitedly stopped mid way.

"Well, that problem was solved quickly. Happy to help," he acknowledged sarcastically.

"Actually you had a great idea," Hermione retorted and turned to the opposite direction without further explanation.

* * *

As Hermione had expected - judging his newly found ambition to score higher grades - she found Harry in the library. She suspected she knew what had spurned his worries of not fulfilling the needed average grade. Snape had once again been especially daunting with the marks for their last submission and Harry hadn't gotten off well. His inability to get the marks he needed in Potions was threatening his future aspects of becoming an Auror.

Not wanting to disturb Harry's studies, she sat beside him silently to work on her own subjects. He looked up briefly but, his eyes unfocused and with dark circles beneath. He seemed absent, as if he didn't really notice her presence. He turned back to his notes, and they worked like that side by side for a few hours.

"I'm taking a break," Harry told her at some point, and she agreed to pay him company. Together they retreated into an empty classroom, where Harry rubbed at his eyes tiredly.

"I guess you want to talk to me?" he asked, surprising Hermione with his accurate guess. She nodded and moved to lean against the teacher's desk in front of the empty rows.

"Listen, Harry," Hermione searched for words, looking down at her folded hands. "I… I think we as friends fell into some kind of routine that was easy but that wasn't comfortable."

Once she had started talking, Hermione felt the words rushing from her mouth, unable to stop them and unable to really comprehend what she was saying.

"We thought that everyone was fine with their place in it, but we clearly aren't. We… we weren't able to tell each other, so we kept each other at arms length. That's what I did at least," she shook her head shamefully.

"And I hurt Ron. I hurt _you_. I didn't want that. I just didn't want to trouble you with my doubts and problems. You always ask me for advice, turn to me with your problems and I was afraid to do the same, and that is not right. We are friends, aren't we?" she looked up at Harry. "We are supposed to _depend_ on each other and _trust_ each other, and I only ever wanted _you_ to depend on _me,_ because I was afraid of losing you. I – I didn't want to let you down like last year. And now you have problems that I can't help you with and I feel _so_ useless…"

Harry listened to her, let her finish and hugged her when her soul was bared before him. "It's alright, Hermione, you know? It's not always your problem to deal with. We have to learn to fend for ourselves, don't we?" he squeezed her shoulders, giving her a lopsided smile and she laughed through her tears.

"I… I just feel so useless and like I don't deserve you because I can't help you," she croaked out.

"Blimey, you sure are crying a lot lately, aren't you?" Harry asked worried.

"I guess so," Hermione admitted. "I think, I'm quite stressed with schoolwork and stuff,"

Harry looked at her unbelieving, "Who are you? What did you do to Hermione?"

They shared a laugh and just like that it felt easy again. To be friends. It wasn't just some obligation Hermione dreaded. It was fun and sometimes it hurt. But it felt right all in all.

"I figured out how to help you, Harry," she told him with an encouraging smile.

* * *

The next day, Hermione cancelled her learning session in the library with Ernie and met with Harry instead. She demanded his notes on every subject to review them. It was a mess, she realized and she now understood how he got into so much stress lately. Together, they worked out a plan for him to bring order into his revising schedule, and he seemed quite relieved, when she told him that his notes – though not very orderly – were actually quite detailed and didn't miss anything gravely important.

Helping Harry with his studies actually wasn't so bad for Hermione either as she could revise by explaining what she had already learned with Ernie to Harry again. She noticed that by working _with_ him instead of _for_ him, Harry was way more open with subject material he didn't get at first and carefully listened to her explanations.

Afterwards, he asked her if he should have another talk with Ron again in her place, but Hermione shook her head, thanking him. This was something she had to do on her own. She messed this up, and now she'd have to fix it herself.

* * *

After a brief Prefects meeting on Thursday, where Hermione had handed out the timetables for the coming weeks rounds, Ron actually came to her himself. He stayed behind while the others left, waiting for the last Prefect to exit the Head's Office, standing by the door and shuffling his feet. Finally, they were alone and Ron opened his mouth unsure of how to address her.

Hermione stopped him holding up her hand. "I have to apologise, Ron," she told him. "Please just listen."

She took a deep breath. "I wasn't fair, I realise that now. I… I didn't know how to approach you anymore. I didn't know how to – how to _deal_ with this," she made a gesture between the two of them.

"I've had a crush on you for so long, and then I didn't, and I didn't know how to proceed from there. I was afraid you might return those feelings I no longer had. I felt bad about it. I felt like I was _betraying_ you, like I let you down," she shook her head looking down.

"That's why I pushed you away, hoping you could no longer want any more than what we had if I did. It felt bad, but it - it was easy because I didn't have to talk about what I felt. I - I was so afraid of losing you that I rather ruined our friendship than hurting you by not being in love with you anymore," she covered her face with her hands.

"I never really asked, did I?" Ron responded quietly, looking at his own hands. "I knew you liked me. I knew for a while. But I was afraid that, if we spoke it out loud, I wouldn't be able to ignore it anymore and would feel bad about not returning the feeling. I guess I'm no better than you were…"

"Oh, Ron," Hermione shook her head smiling sadly. "How could we ever be this stupid?"

"You are the smart one!" he defended himself. "I am allowed to be a dunderhead from time to time. What is your excuse?"

Hermione hit him playfully, a wide grin on her face, before she hugged him tightly.

* * *

At the dinner table the trio was united once again and Hermione felt content for the first time since what had to be forever. She knew that there were still things to be set straight, but they could wait, she decided. Hermione gazed down the table to where Ginny sat with her friends of the year below. She didn't look at Harry once, which made Hermione incredibly sad. But who knew? Maybe this would sort out itself with time. She'd like that.

She looked back at Harry, sitting opposite to her, and noticed that his gaze had strayed to Ginny as well. There was a Hogsmeade visit upcoming soon. Hermione knew that the both of them would have gone together under normal circumstances and would have cherished their time as boyfriend and girlfriend. It really wasn't fair, she thought.

* * *

The next day, Hermione hoped that the Quidditch match in the afternoon would cheer Harry up so she had promised to join her friends to watch it. They trotted down towards the field, following the mob of students on their way to watch the game. It was windy, but the weather stayed dry against all expectations.

"Not taking your girlfriend to the match, Potter?" Malfoy sneered when they passed him at the bottom of the stands. Hermione shot him a glare to shut him up. When she spotted the tiny girl standing next to Malfoy, clinging to his arm and pursing her pouty mouth that was shining bright red with lipstick, Hermione raised a brow.

She swallowed a comment about how fast Malfoy swapped _his_ girlfriends and for one much too young this time in her opinion. Instead, Hermione urged her friends to not ignore him and simply walk on.

The Ravenclaw Quidditch team did well in the last game of the year against the Hufflepuffs, but Hermione – having never been very interested in the dangerous sport – couldn't bring herself to see the entire match. The tension between Harry and Ginny, sitting close in the crammed stands, was weighing down on her, and so she decided to leave the game after the first half was over with a tight draw between the two teams.

Returning to her dorm, she ran herself a bath and relaxed for the first time in what felt like years. Hermione felt old. As if the last weeks had completely sucked the life out of her. Her friends were at her side again, but everything felt harder and gloomier somehow. There was an encompassing dread. It had been quiet in the wizarding world lately. Too quiet.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **The Headmaster was looking at Harry and Ron who were seated in front of his desk, their heads hanging low and looking as guilty as they should be.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Finally Hermione has her friends back, but not everything seems to be alright...  
What did you think about Hermione's confessions?  
Did you like Malfoy in this chapter? He was almost nice :D**

 _Kudos to my beta KoolStoryBro13!_


	10. He's Unfair

**Hello everybody! Another chapter from me :)**

 **I wanted to say thank you to all my diligent reviewers as well as readers! You really make my day :) I find myself smiling stupidly at my Smartphone every time I get a message about a new follower or favourite or review :'}**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Her friends were at her side again, but everything felt harder and gloomier somehow. There was an encompassing dread. It had been quiet in the wizarding world lately. Too quiet.**

* * *

How the hell could they have come up with such a stupid idea?! Yes, Harry was head over heels in love with Ginny and yes, he was desperate to get her back, but _this_! This was too much. Hermione had the urge to hit both of them over the head repeatedly, but she had to pull herself together and remain calm until this charade was over.

They were all assembled in the Headmaster's office with Dumbledore himself sitting at his desk, deep, sorrowful creases wrinkling his old face. A brief image of herself sitting in the same positions with similar creases and grey hair flashed before her eyes and Hermione surmised that she might well end up looking like that in the not so soon future if Harry and Ron continued with their reckless ventures.

The Headmaster was looking at Harry and Ron, who were seated in front of his desk, their heads hanging low and looking as guilty as they should be. Next to them stood none other than the Minister of Magic himself as well as two Aurors who had brought the two of them back to Hogwarts after saving their sorry arses.

Professor McGonagall was present as well as was Malfoy in his position as Head Boy. He was leaning against the door, watching the whole affair intrigued.

"That was the most reckless thing I've ever encountered!" Minister Fudge ranted. It was already the third time he had said that, Hermione counted silently.

Professor Dumbledore nodded gravely, addressing Harry and Ron, "Can you tell me what was on your mind when you decided to do something so dangerous?"

They wrung their hands, and Hermione would have felt sorry for them if she hadn't been so outraged by their insolence.

"We wanted to buy a broom," Harry answered meekly.

"A broom!" Fudge threw his hands into the air.

Professor Dumbledore didn't let off. "Why did you need a new broom, Harry?" he inquired.

"Not for me… It was supposed to be a Christmas present. I- I wanted to apologise to Ginny with it," he looked at his hands sadly. "I didn't think about how dangerous it was to go to London alone."

"You didn't think about it?! You were nearly killed! Or worse, taken hostage! If there hadn't been our Aurors around – by pure chance I might add – the Death Eaters would have had an easy job of it!" the Minister cried outraged and Harry ducked his head even lower.

"Do you realize what this day could have meant for the war, Harry?" Professor Dumbledore asked him sternly.

Harry shook his head "I didn't… didn't think about it at all."

"This ignorance needs to be punished severely, Dumbledore!" Fudge demanded. Hermione really wished the hysteric man would shut up already.

"It was all my fault!" Ron suddenly interrupted, looking at the Headmaster bravely. "I told him if he doesn't make up with my sister, I would hex his balls off just before dumping him in the lake for the Squid to have for dinner! I couldn't see her cry any longer so I told him to get her something special for Christmas and bloody apologise to her!"

Professor Dumbledore nodded gravely, looking at Ron now. "Yes, this behaviour cannot go unpunished, I'm afraid," he looked up at the Minister and his Aurors. "Thank you for bringing our students back in one piece. We will take over from here."

Minister Fudge nodded. "Yes, yes. If there is ever any problem, feel free to contact me directly, Dumbledore."

"Your assistance in this matter was of great help, thank you Minister." The Headmaster stood to shake his hand. "I wish you a merry Christmas time and hope you will be able to buy presents for your beloved ones safely."

"Merry Christmas!" Fudge raised his hat and left with his Aurors in tow.

When the door had closed behind them, the Headmaster addressed Professor McGonagall, "Minerva, will you take care of this? I need to find out how it was possible for Tom to wrangle his men into Diagon Alley."

"Of course, Albus," she answered, ushering the students outside and leading them to her office.

She didn't add anything to the scolding the boys had already received, but shook her head at them, disappointed. "Mr Potter you will serve detention with Mr Filch for your lack of judgement of the graveness of the situation! As Mr Weasley has claimed main responsibility for your actions however, he won't get away so easily. But the choice of your punishment is for the Head Students to make as you are a Prefect and therefore fall under their responsibility." She turned towards Hermione and Malfoy.

Hermione nodded, already coming up with an adequate punishment.

"Miss Granger, as much as I value your opinion, due to your friendship to Mr Weasley you are clearly too involved in this matter to judge fairly. Therefore, I leave the decision to Mr Malfoy," Professor McGonagall told her with an apologizing look.

Hermione was speechless. She couldn't believe that Professor McGonagall didn't trust her to decide for a punishment unbiased. Malfoy would be relentless. He would do his worst, she was sure of it. Judging from his gleeful expression, he thought the exact same. "It needs to be a punishment that really teaches Weasley a lesson, right?"

"I'll leave that to you Mr Malfoy," Professor McGonagall answered.

"Alright," he nodded and turned towards Ron who opted to look over the other boys shoulder rather than meet his gaze. "Weasley, you are no longer allowed to play Quidditch and your broom will be locked away until the end of the school year."

Hermione could see Ron's hands balling into fists, but he only nodded tensely.

"Professor-!" Hermione spoke up, but was interrupted by Professor McGonagall raising her hand.

"This was decided upon, Miss Granger."

Hermione wanted to object, but stopped herself, when she saw the sombre look behind the strict facade of the woman. Professor McGonagall was as unhappy about this decision as her, she realised. There was no way out of this punishment. Professor McGonagall then sent them on their way back to their dormitories, seeming in need of something strong to calm her nerves after all this racket.

Hermione walked beside Malfoy back to their common room, fuming the whole way. She ground her teeth to not scream at him right then and there in the middle of the corridors. But as soon as both of them strode through the mirror entrance, she no longer held back.

"You arsehole!" she cried and took hold of the closest object to her right to hurl it at him. "You could have given him detention and be done with it! You clearly took advantage of the situation so that _your_ team had a chance at winning!"

Malfoy dodged the book she had thrown gracefully like the trained Seeker he was and glared at her. "I taught that dimwit a lesson, nothing more," he told her haughtily.

"As if!" she yelled. "Admit it: You just wanted to shaft me! You make everything about yourself! You were supposed to decide on a punishment from an outsider position but you make this your little petty revenge stuff! You aren't just a minor Prefect anymore, Malfoy! You've got _responsibility_ and you have to be _fair_! You have to do your _job_!"

"Well," he advanced on her until he was uncomfortably close. "If I'm so bad at it, why did McGonagall leave it to me to decide what to do? You better shut your filthy Mudblood mouth. You are not even worthy enough to criticise me at all," he hissed and she took a step backwards at his open hostility.

"You- Don't call me that!" she poked her finger at his face. He grabbed it hard and pushed her back. Hermione tried to evade him but that only made her finger joints pop audibly and hurt like hell.

"It's time you learned your place, little girl," he growled and she felt a shiver crawl up her back and scrape at her neck with icy fingers. Hermione didn't want to back up and she wasn't able to either as her back now hit the wall. So she just stared at him unrelenting. Malfoy was breathing hard, staring right back until he very slowly let go of her. It didn't feel like a victory though, because she now had to lean heavier against the wall to support her weak knees. Struggling to appear unperturbed, she slowly pushed off and strode past him up to her room.

* * *

The next morning, a ruffled looking owl did a crash landing into Ron's cereal. Patting at the milk splatters on her robe, Hermione pulled out the soaked letter from underneath the screeching bird. When it was freed from its delivery, Errol ruffled his feathers and then decided to fall asleep without leaving his self-proclaimed bathtub. Maybe the milk would work it's rejuvenating magic and make him more unerring next time. Ron accepted the letter Hermione had dried magically before handing it to him. He stared at the alarmingly red envelope, looking up at Harry with a painful expression.

"Weasley has gotten himself a Howler!" someone cried excited. Everyone at the Gryffindor table went silent, turning towards Ron expectantly. The rest of the Great Hall was still bustling, but gradually their schoolmates noticed the Gryffindors' unusual quietness and craned their heads, curiosity swapping over the rows of students in waves.

"Open it, before it's too late," Hermione advised. "You knew you'd get one, better get over with it quickly."

Ron swallowed and nodded, throwing a last glance at Harry who was unusually interested in his bacon and scrambled eggs.

Breaking the seal, Ron opened the latch. When the daunting thing started unfolding of its own accord, he immediately let it drop with a little squeal. The whole Hall seemed to collectively take a breath in anticipation.

"Ron, Harry," a deep and tired voice echoed unnaturally loud from the small letter. "I just came back from a meeting with Kingsley concerning the events in Diagon Alley."

Ron stared at the letter hanging in the air in front of him, trembling slightly as the voice of his father droned with deafening volume, seeping with disappointment. Harry had looked up from his breakfast with wide eyes. Clearly, he had prepared himself for Mrs Weasley scolding them mercilessly. The calm and disheartened voice of Mr Weasley was proving to be way more cruel.

"Your mother was too upset to write you, she is still resting from the distress you have caused her," Mr Weasley continued, his voice vibrating through the Hall so loudly that the candles above their heads started flickering. "I hope you are aware of the dangers you two put not only yourselves in, but many more people as well. We are still investigating the attack and I don't quite know if I should be relieved that they didn't attack because of your presence, or if it is instead more alarming that they are willing to risk being caught to cause so much destruction and harm."

At this point most students were already covering their ears to muffle the bone-quaking noise. "I'm not even trying to understand your line of thought that justified your actions. I simply cannot fathom how you came up with this idea and how Hermione could let you go through with it."

Hermione's ears heated. She hadn't known! How was she supposed to stop her friends from killing themselves if they didn't think of divulging her in their plans anymore?!

"I expect you to be on your best behaviour for the remainder of the school year. Otherwise I fear you will dig Molly, as well as yourselves, an early grave," Mr Weasley finished and the letter fell to the table, again lifeless and seemingly innocent, offering no hint of the crushing words it contained.

The students sighted with relief, when the letter finally fell silent. Everyone turned to the two culprits and slowly started whispering to each other. Within a few heartbeats, the noise level surpassed the usual bustling and the wildest guesses about last night's events were thrown into the rumour mill. Briefly, Hermione toyed with the idea of making Ron promise to rectify his father's notions of Hermione having stood for her friends' actions. But when she saw the devastation on his face, she patted his arm instead.

"How about a little visit to Hagrid later?" she suggested, trying to distract Ron from his agony over the Howler.

Harry nodded approving, seemingly happy for the distraction. "That's a great idea," he replied. "We didn't really make time for him the whole school year yet," he realized, looking a bit ashamed.

"Don't worry, Harry. He'll understand that we have a lot on our backs right now," Hermione comforted him.

So it was decided and the three of them turned their backs to the school at noon. The grounds were empty of any students, which wasn't remarkable as the weather had gotten atrocious in the last weeks. They had to hold onto their scarfs and hats to keep them on their body while the wind tugged at their limbs violently.

"Hermione, aren't you mad at us?" Ron asked on their way down. "You haven't even scolded us so far."

"Oh, I am mad as hell!" she informed him. "And I think Harry got away far too lightly," she looked at her friend sternly. "You should have lost you position in the team, not Ron. I'm not stupid. That haphazard plan _reeks_ of Potter. It _was_ you idea, wasn't it?"

Harry nodded ruefully.

"But I also think that you were scolded enough," she added. "I hope you learned your lesson, but I know you too well to assume that you would never do something like that again," she sighed. "Just try to stay alive, that would be great," she told her friends and they nodded grinning.

"I just can't comprehend why you didn't simply _order_ a broom. It's not as if they didn't deliver them via owl."

Harry and Ron looked at her like she was an alien. "Hermione! You can't order a broom that you haven't even seen before. Unless it's a Firebolt maybe – everything depends on quality. But every broom has its own personality," Ron explained.

Hermione scoffed, receiving indignant glances from her two best friends.

The three of them were relieved when they reached the little hut at the edge of the Forbidden Forest and Hagrid opened the door for them. He ushered them inside, after pushing Fang from the door who was especially happy to greet his friends.

"Come in, come in. Let's shut the wind out," Hagrid invited them and they took a seat in front of the crackling fire. "What a weather, eh?" Hagrid smiled at them. "How nice of ye' to come down 'ere through that wind!"

"We missed you, Hagrid!" Harry smiled.

"Ye' got a lot of work, I know. I'm happy you've still got the time to visit. Hell, I'm glad I ne'er had to go through last year with finals and stuff!" he boomed, laughing.

"Yeah, lucky you," Ron added, looking actually envious which earned him a jab in the side from Hermione and a laugh from Harry.

They were in the process of peeling off their layers of clothes, when Hermione's pocket suddenly grew warm. Sighing, she fished out her Joint Mirror.

"Sorry guys, got to answer that," she excused herself and opened the lit to find not Malfoy facing her but Theodore Nott to her surprise.

"Why do you have Malfoy's mirror?" she demanded to know.

"Calm down, Granger," Nott sneered. "Draco's busy and has his hands full."

"Well, what is it?"

"There's a fight down here on the pitch. See?" He turned the mirror away from his face so Hermione could make out a little crowd in the shaky image. She wasn't sure, but it seemed like a Ravenclaw had taken hold of his broomstick, flailing the tail at a Slytherin repeatedly and she paused at that image for a moment.

Nott's face returned to the small glass. "Yeah," he said, nodding at her flabbergasted expression. "Draco needs his little Head Girl over here, I guess," he grinned, at which she knit her brows together.

"I thought I was not worthy enough for him?" She sighed. "I'll be there in a minute," Hermione ended the call closed the lid to find her friends looking at her expectantly.

"I'm really sorry. My presence is needed," she rolled her eyes.

"Take 'em cookies at least," Hagrid said good-naturedly and pushed the plate towards her.

"Thank you, Hagrid," she said, pocketing some of the rock hard sweets. "And sorry again. I guess this will take a while," she apologised.

"No worries, Hermione," Ron smiled. "It's your job, right?"

She beamed at him. "See you later, guys!" she bid them goodbye and took her leave.

While marching at a quick pace towards the Quidditch Pitch, Hermione tugged her scarf tightly around her neck to fend off the winds beating around the castle grounds. She looked up to the sky and knew that it would be snowing soon, maybe in a couple of days from now. She looked forward to that. Snow made the castle even cosier and you could sit in front of the fire for a whole day to soak in its warmth.

When she reached the pitch, she came upon a small crowd of Slytherin students and Ravenclaws dressed in their Quidditch gear, Malfoy among them shouting to all sides. His attempt at establishing order, however, seemed fruitless so far, as the students continued yelling at each other and at him.

"It's been pretty entertaining so far," Nott greeted her grinning. He _lived_ for drama, Hermione knew, so she just rolled her eyes at him.

She skilfully cast a _Sonorous_ at her throat and commanded silence. To her great satisfaction, indeed everyone shut up and turned towards her. "Will anyone do me the favour to enlighten me on what is going on here?" she demanded to know.

"I'll tell you!" the Ravenclaw captain Roger Davies came forward, an angry frown marring his face. "We've discovered a case of espionage on our Quidditch techniques! The Slytherins were hiding on the stands and spied upon us!" he spat.

The accused Slytherins - Hermione recognized Hanley among them - just looked at her untrusting, not offering their point of view.

Malfoy stepped forward, not quite looking at her. "Actually, some of my team wanted to see if they could do additional training. As no one signed up for the pitch and no sane person would want to fly in this weather anyways, they assumed the pitch to be empty. When they arrived they were accused of spying on the Ravenclaw team," he filled her in calmly.

"As if!" Davies roared. "They heard us discussing about whether we could train in this weather or not at lunch! They came here on purpose and just had an excuse up their sleeves!"

Malfoy looked like he would literally start fuming any moment.

"Did you sign up the Ravenclaws for the pitch today, or not?" Hermione asked Davies with raised brows.

"Well, no... But that's not the point here! They tried to cheat! They should be banned!"

"Don't exaggerate, Davies!" Malfoy bellowed. "You don't want to incur yourself detention, do you?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. Malfoy really seemed extremely short tempered lately.

"As you are way too involved in this situation, it'd be my decision how to solve it, don't you think so as well, Malfoy?" she intervened firmly.

He whirled around to glare at her, "You owe me something, Granger, remember?" he told her, glowering.

"You really think I would let personal issues cloud my decisions as Head Girl? Don't mistake me with yourself," she retorted aloof.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:  
**  
 **"The team is banned from the pitch for the reminder of the year. You'll be expected to call on Professor Flitwick for further punishment tomorrow." With that she turned on her heels and left the pitch fuming.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **What would Ginny say, if she knew what Ron and Harry did to get her a nice Christmas present? Would she fall around their necks or would she cast a hex at them for their stupidity?**

 **What do you think Hermione will do? The spoiler is quite telling, I know :D**

 _Thank you KSB for still reading every single chapter and offering you opinion how to improve them before publishing!_


	11. She's Fair

**Hello my Lovelies :) I'm back with Hermione's decision on the Quidditch Pitch!  
**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"As you are way too involved in this situation, it'd be my decision how to solve it, don't you think so as well, Malfoy?" she intervened firmly.**

 **He whirled around to glare at her, "You owe me something, Granger, remember?" he told her, glowering.**

 **"You really think I would let personal issues cloud my decisions as Head Girl? Don't mistake me with yourself," she retorted aloof.**

* * *

"I don't see the problem here." Hermione turned back towards the group of Quidditch Players. "If none of you has listed their team for the pitch, it is open for everyone. It's your problem if you decide to leave your tactics open to spectators or other training teams when you didn't even take the time to sign in a simple list. I thought you Ravenclaws were supposed to be clever."

"What?" Davies' jaw dropped. "You are siding with _them_?!" He pointed accusingly at Malfoy in place of the Slytherins. Malfoy himself looked at her no less surprised and Nott was enjoying the show immensely.

"If you can't accept the rules, you can't expect others to follow them, Davies" Hermione told him sternly. "And I won't tolerate unfair treatment of any Quidditch team, no matter which house!" At that point she shot Malfoy a glare, before turning back to the Ravenclaw Captain. "If you insist on insulting the other team, _you_ will be banned for lacking sportsmanship." That silenced everyone.

"I see," Davies sneered when he found his footing again. "Trained you well, didn't he? Are you his little Mudblood now?"

Her eyes bulged at that and she had to pull herself together immensely to not lunge at the arrogant boy. "Fifty points from Ravenclaw," Hermione replied icily. "And the team is banned from the pitch for the remainder of the year. You'll be expected to call on Professor Flitwick for further punishment tomorrow, Davies." With that she turned on her heel and left the pitch fuming. Pureblood ignorance didn't stop at Slytherin House apparently.

"You heard your Head Girl!" Malfoy shushed the upcoming objections behind her. "Clear the pitch, or I'll add detention for every single one of you," he threatened the Ravenclaws.

Shortly after that, he followed her. "Wow, until the end of the year? They'll fail every match," Malfoy laughed when he fell in step beside Hermione.

"Consider yourself lucky that I am fair and don't give a damn about Quidditch or I would have kicked your teams' arse for pulling that bullshit. Don't think I'm stupid and don't know how your minds work. They did _exactly_ what they were accused of," Hermione growled.

"Yeah," Malfoy agreed grinning, ignoring her jab at Ron's penalty. "But we are way more clever than Davies _and_ had an alibi. That pinhead isn't more intelligent than the average troll."

"Yeah, he proved that," she agreed frowning.

Malfoy looked at her from the side but didn't comment.

* * *

Davies' parents got an angry letter and he had to atone for his slip-up by giving up the Captain's position and leaving the Quidditch Team. But that didn't give Hermione any satisfaction, as word of the incident spread faster than bushfire and her name was discredited more and more with every time it was retold and exaggerated by the rumour mill. She had to endure hostility of varying blatancy with every step she took. Even in the library, where she almost always found peace, she was disrupted by sneaky third years playing their shenanigans on her. She almost never caught the culprits trip-jinxing her or drenching her lap in pumpkin juice and her homework in ink whenever one of the offending liquids was open around her.

As a consequence, she barricaded herself in her room to be able to study in peace. It was grating on her nerves and robbed her of her sleep. She practically looked like a ghost after just a couple of days and there was no end to the animosities. It started getting out of hand, especially when she came down one morning having slightly overslept and being greeted in the common room by Malfoy sitting at their table and looking at her with a worried frown.

She rubbed her eyes to shake off the sleepiness and took a second glance.

He definitely looked at her strangely.

"What?" she asked.

"You are buttoned up the wrong way," he replied, nodding at her blouse.

Looking down, she actually found her buttons askew. She quickly unbuttoned them and buttoned them up correctly. When Hermione looked up again, he stared at her even more strangely.

"What now?" she asked exasperatedly patting at her hair to see if it was out of place as well.

He shook his head. "You are getting way too comfy for my tastes," he said with a frown while still looking at her blouse, or rather at her chest, Hermione realized, blushing furiously and glared at him. How dare he! She still wore a top underneath that blouse! It wasn't like she enjoyed stripping in front of people.

* * *

The last Hogsmeade weekend before Christmas break was scheduled for the first weekend in December. Hermione and Malfoy had gathered the Prefects to discuss the safety measures for the trip to the village as well as activities for the students too young to visit Hogsmeade.

Hermione was in charge of distributing the tasks, when she was interrupted by a fifth year Gryffindor Prefect: "Why should we listen to her? She's siding with the Slytherins! What kind of Gryffindor does that?!"

"Shut your damn trap, dimwit!" Sadie growled, making Hermione smile at the younger girl's open loyalty despite being in Slytherin. Hermione must have left an impression, which was at least positive around Slytherin house.

Ron cleverly kept out of the affair, as he cherished Quidditch and didn't want to risk the team rebelling against him like they did against Hermione. She had after all decimated their chances at winning the house cup indirectly by jeopardizing Ravenclaw's total score. Slytherin could well come out first place if they won the next game. This prospect turned even the members of Hermione's own house against her. The Gryffindor Prefects - backed up by the Ravenclaws - now launched into a heated argument with the Slytherins. The Hufflepuffs seemed disturbed by so much open hostility and retreated into a corner, keeping to themselves and watching the whole affair with nervous curiosity.

"She did her job!" Malfoy suddenly roared and silenced everyone in the room. "And if any of you expects fair treatment whenever you misbehave, you better shut the hell up and mind your own business!" He really was frightening when he got all serious. The Prefects seemed stunned after that and quietly accepted their assigned tasks. Hermione was quite impressed herself by Malfoy standing up for her. That wasn't something she had anticipated.

When all tasks were distributed, Hermione turned to Malfoy: "Do we need to discuss Christmas already? There will be some kind of activity in the Holidays, right?"

"No, we _don't_. I have wasted enough time here already because you can't keep your housemates at a tighter leash. I have plans, you know?" he grunted while impatiently tapping his foot.

She raised her eyebrows, but before she could ask the obvious question he interrupted her: "None of your business, Granger," he shook his head irritated at her nosiness.

After the meeting, Hermione decided for some alone time. Grabbing one of her favourite books from her room, she slouched on the couch in front of their fireplace to enjoy the warmth it emitted.

She read until the sun slowly set and the light got too dull to continue reading. She lit some candles and resumed her book, when the mirror entrance erupted in tell tale waves and Malfoy emerged together with a Ravenclaw Prefect.

Hermione tried to ignore the giggling girl and her _dearest_ dorm mate as she stared intensely at the page she was currently reading. She ended up blankly focusing it until the both of them had disappeared up into his room without acknowledging her at all. For that she was rather thankful. When the noise died down completely, Hermione exhaled in relief, well knowing that they hadn't suddenly decided to shut up but used a silencing spell to probably do the exact opposite of shutting up.

Hermione was deliriously happy that she didn't have to listen to _that_.

She didn't turn around from her place on the couch when she heard the girl leave about an hour later. Shortly after the mirror was all undisturbed again, Malfoy trudged back down the stairs as well.

"You should really contemplate your commerce with those girls," Hermione chastised and turned at last so she was kneeling backwards on the sofa with her arms propped up on the backrest. "They might one day expect more than just a bit of fun and games."

"What was that?" He looked at her with narrowed eyes, having stopped in the middle of the room.

She opened her mouth to repeat herself, but Malfoy interrupted her.

"No, no, no, no! You are not going there, Granger!" He advanced on her.

Hermione looked at him confused.

"I'm not one of your friends whose every step you get to improve. I don't need your unwanted consultation!"

She fell back on her heels with him standing in front of her now.

"I don't care if you play little efficiency manager with those poor sods, but not with me. We are not friends, and we won't ever be. So I don't know where you got the notion that you can mould me into one of your little replica-puppets. I am not interested in your clever advice! Ever!" He had put his hands on the back of the couch by now, leaning even more forward and forcing Hermione to lean further back. She was completely shaken. She didn't-… she hadn't- … would never… what?!

Angrily, he pushed himself off the couch and buzzed off, leaving her behind completely stunned.

* * *

To Hermione's great relief, the hostility against her died down after a couple more days. She didn't mind the comments, as she didn't give second thought about them, but they had done everything their little beastly minds could conceive to drive her out of her favourite places and unfortunately the library was a much frequented hang out spot for the studious Ravenclaws who didn't miss an opportunity to torment her. Luckily, Harry and Ron had her back at most times and sat with her during many of the hours the seventh years now spent between the heavily loaded bookshelves.

* * *

When the first snow fell, Hermione bundled up in thick layers of clothing for the stressful task that was managing the Hogsmeade Trip. Half of the prefects were scheduled to escort groups of students on their way to the wizarding village where everyone could do their Christmas shopping. In Hogsmeade the Head Students were required to be available at all times should any problems arise, so she had agreed with Malfoy to stay at the Three Broomsticks, because it was the most public place where they were easily attainable.

Hermione had originally offered to take turns so they could do some shopping themselves, but he had declined claiming to already have ordered his Christmas presents via Owl Post. To not be forced to spend the whole trip with Malfoy on her own, Hermione had guilt-tripped her friends to join her for a Butterbeer after they had finished their shopping.

The Head Students were waiting outside the Main Entrance for the last students to leave so they could follow them and collect any stray third-years who were more curious to discover the area beyond Hogwarts' boundaries than seeing the actual village.

Professor Sprout scurried past the two towards the entrance, her arms full of cans labelled as Unicorn Dung. Hermione wrinkled her nose at the notion of someone - probably Hagrid - roaming the Forbidden Forest to collect the stinking but valuable muck. She concluded that the Herbology Professor needed it to winterize her plants with the frost repelling matter. Hermione's eyes followed her Professor who strangely turned back when she reached the grand doors and shot them a long look. Hermione smiled kindly at the roundly Professor but she seemed to not notice her.

Shaking her head, she felt Malfoy squirm next to her. She looked up at him, noticing his cheeks glowing red from the cold. His expression was clouded and he twitched with irritation. Hermione huffed. It wasn't her fault that they had to wait outside. He had proposed it when Filch had tried to nag to them about filthy students dragging snow and mud into the castle while he collected the permissions for the Hogsmeade trips. Hermione had been relieved when Malfoy had been blunt about rather waiting outside, herself being too polite to tell off the grumpy caretaker.

Malfoy's friends had just passed them, sneering at Hermione and bidding him goodbye, when a Ravenclaw Prefect who wasn't scheduled for duty today emerged from the castle. Hermione recognized Isobel MacDougal, the girl she had encountered snogging Malfoy in their common room several times now. Hadn't he been seeing another girl temporarily? Hermione was sure he had been accompanied by a fifth year Slytherin Girl to watch the last Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Hermione remembered thinking that the Slytherin girl had been much too young and shouldn't be going for a player like Malfoy.

The Ravenclaw now standing in front of them, beamed at Malfoy.

"Do you want to go to Madam Puddifoot's or the Three Broomsticks together?" she asked him.

"Are you the last one?" he questioned, ignoring her inquiry.

"I think so," Isobel answered not letting herself being thrown off track by his prickliness.

"Good." He turned, marching towards the path to Hogsmeade.

Malfoy was lucky to be so handsome, Hermione mused, otherwise no girl would show any patience with him at all. Usually it took his flings only a few days, sometimes even a week to come to the conclusion that his ugly character was blemishing his pretty face enough to not be worth any emotional investment. Hermione watched Isobel keeping pace next to Malfoy and realised that she had outlasted many of her predecessors. She thought back to the deed she still owed Malfoy for walking in on them when they had occupied the Heads' common room. That had been a month ago.

"So, what about a cuppa tea or a Butterbeer?" the girl probed, smiling kindly and holding onto Malfoy's arm as he refused to take his hands out of his pockets.

"I'm not going anywhere with you, Isobel. I have duties," he told her off.

"But the meeting point for the Head Students is at the Three Broomsticks anyway! Even if you can't go anywhere, we could still stay there together."

"No," Malfoy answered as uncommunicative as one could be.

"You'd rather hang out with _her_ instead of me?" Isobel gestured towards Hermione, who was following them quietly. "We could just as well get a table for our own and have a nice day together, Draco," she whined. But then she took a step back and contemplated him. "Oh, you probably want to get something for Christmas, right? I'm sorry. I didn't want to be nosy. If that's the case we can still meet after you have gotten something for me," she smiled kindly and patted his arm. Hermione wondered how someone could ever be this patient with the blond boy walking silently along the road. Isobel seemed like a nice girl, she was pretty as well. She could have anyone she wanted.

Malfoy shook his head irritated. "I don't know where you got the notion that I'd buy you a present."

"You don't have to!" Isobel said quickly. "I just thought you didn't want me to see you buying it," she added subdued and stared at the ground in front of her. The snow was crunching loudly under their feet and the sound filled the awkward silence between them.

"I don't mind, if you go shopping for half an hour or so, Malfoy," Hermione tried to lift the mood. "I'll hold the line at the meeting point."

He turned around towards her with a glare, pulling his arm free from Isobel's hold. "I don't need to go on a bloody shopping trip! There will be no presents and I don't need you meddling in my business, Granger."

Hermione cocked her head to the side. She knew that his fling with the Ravenclaw Prefect was nothing serious to him, but the girl seemed to actually like him and have feelings for him. It irritated Hermione to no end that Malfoy was using the girl by stalling her. "It's okay to buy your girlfriend a Christmas Present, you know, Malfoy? That's even considered a nice gesture, if you even know what that is," Hermione challenged.

"She's _not_ my girlfriend," he stressed and Isobel looked at him wide eyed.

Hermione could tell the poor girl was close to tears and she hoped that by now all her delusions she had towards Malfoy had vanished. Hermione didn't wish her any harm and only wanted her to see what a git Malfoy really was. He wasn't worth investing any form of compassion or even love in.

Isobel turned on the spot and walked back to the castle at a brisk pace. Hermione stared after her until she noticed that Malfoy had already moved on and was now several steps ahead. She quickly followed him.

"You can go after her, I don't mind," Hermione told Malfoy, frowning at his shuttered expression.

He simply shook his head. Usually he would have cursed her and all Muggles on earth for interfering in his affairs, but he kept walking silently, not even looking in her direction.

Hermione suddenly felt bad, even if she had done nothing wrong. She fiddled with the ends of her scarf and tried to relax, but the silence emitting from Malfoy wore her down.

"Listen, I'm sorry, Malfoy. I should have kept my mouth shut, it really wasn't my place to interfere," she rushed out.

"Yes," he simply answered which threw her off track even more. Hermione stared at him incredulously and wondered if he wasn't as cold hearted about this incident as he let on.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"Fucking bitch!" he grabbed her right wrist and twisted it painfully until she let the letter fall, wincing and panting heavily from wrestling with him.**

 **::::::::::::**

Did you expect Hermione's decision on the Quidditch Pitch?  
What did you think about Malfoy and Isobel? Any theories why he is so mean and practivcally broke up with her?

Thank you KSB for helping me with this chapter :)


	12. She's Curious

**I nearly didn't manage to upload this week, there were some problems with my internet connection and I had some personal stuff to deal with. The last few days were difficult for me and I'm afraid next week won't be much better. I'll try my best, but I can't promise an update next week :(**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Isobel turned on the spot and walked back to the castle at a brisk pace. Hermione stared after her until she noticed that Malfoy had already moved on and was now several steps ahead. She quickly followed him.**

* * *

When the sun slowly started to set, it was time for the students to return to the castle. Malfoy had already headed back, while Hermione and her friends finished their last round of steaming hot Butterbeer to prepare for the trip back through the icy air. Harry paid Madam Rosmerta a generous tip and they made their way to Hogwarts through the heavy snow that had started to fall. The whole way, Ron started to rant about Malfoy's choice of punishment for their little trip to London. Hermione could tell that he missed flying and Quidditch Practice,

"That prick deserves to get his arse whipped with that effin cane his daddy's always carrying around."

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed scandalised.

"What? It's bloody true," he muttered. "That fucking wanker, eating shit from his mommy's silver spoon all the time! I'd love to ram it back up his anus someday."

* * *

When she finally returned to her warm common room, Hermione discarded her heavy winter cloak over the back of the couch. She started unwinding the long Gryffindor scarf from her neck, when she noticed a book lying forgotten on their coffee table. The title piqued her interest immediately and she moved around the couch, dropping the scarf onto the cushions and picking up the book.

 _Wizarding Law and the Ministry. Affiliations and their Influence on Court Ruling_ , it read.

She reluctantly opened it, unsure if she really should handle Malfoy's property, but curiosity won. She only wanted to take a quick look at the table of contents to see if it proved to be as interesting as the title promised.

Suddenly, an envelope slid out from one of the pages and Hermione quickly picked it up, swearing at her carelessness. Now Malfoy would know immediately that she had touched his precious belongings, when he found his bookmark out of place.

She held onto the letter, indecisive how to proceed. When she took a glimpse at it, an official Ministry stamp caught her eye and aroused her curiosity anew. Without dwelling on her guilty conscience, telling her to preserve Malfoy's privacy and secrecy of correspondence, she pulled the document from the already opened letter.

On top of it she recognized the addressor Mafalda Hopkirk on the official appearing document.

 _Mr. Draco L. Malfoy_ , it read.

 _This letter pertains to case file number DM5974, concerning the decision reached by the Wizengamot after your hearing on December the 20_ _th_ _1997\. In accordance with the verdict reached during the specified hearing, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement would like to remind you to exhibit commendable conduct at all times and to abstain from the actions listed on the enclosed supporting documents._

Without stopping to ponder on her actions, Hermione fished the rest of the documents out of the envelope. A quick glance at them revealed a list of prohibited behaviours, some of which were borderline ridiculous. She frowned and continued reading.

 _The MLE Department requires regular reports on you actions including, but not limited to, reports of suspicious behaviour, reports of consorting with known persons of interest, and reports of suspicious activities performed by the subject or his associates. The subject is also bound by law to notify the MLE at once of any information pertaining to illegal or treasonous activities. Withholding such information will be met with dire consequences decided on by a reconsideration of the case in court._

 _In addition, the report below is to be filled in and sent via standard Owl Post to the addressor of this notice._

The next page was composed of several questions concerning lessons and after school activities, as well as requesting a list of books borrowed from the library.

Hermione looked up, when she suddenly heard Malfoy trudge down the stairs.

Unable to retain herself, she turned towards the stairwell where he emerged, his hair glistening wet from a quick warm-up shower.

"Malfoy, what is this?" she asked, waving the offending paper at the young man.

He halted briefly, staring at the missive in her hand, before he skipped the last two steps and stormed towards her, trying to rip the letter from her. Hermione evaded him by drawing back quickly.

"Give it back, Granger," he growled dangerously. "It's mine! Don't poke your muddy nose where it doesn't belong, or I'll hex it off."

She ignored his empty threat and danced around him again, when he tried reaching for the letter a second time.

"They still question you?" she asked stunned.

"Not your bloody business!" he roared and took hold of her left arm to pull her closer and grabbed for the letter in her other hand.

"I'll make it my bloody business!" She writhed out of his hold. "They demand reports from two teachers testifying your _mental stability_ and _trustworthiness_? It says that you have to report on your friend's activities as well!"

"Fucking bitch!" he grabbed her right wrist and twisted it painfully until she let the letter fall, wincing and panting heavily from wrestling with him.

"How often do you have to do that?" she asked when he shoved the letter back into its envelope.

"Every fucking month," he shot her a deathly glare. "If I ever catch you nosing about my stuff again, I'll bloody kill you, Granger. Do you understand me?"

She nodded meekly. He seemed beyond furious and there was shame. A lot of shame that he tried to suppress desperately, but she knew him well enough to interpret his watering eyes.

He turned on his heel and strode back upstairs. Hermione heard him banging his door loudly and then there was the deafening stillness of a silencing charm.

When the emptiness he left reached her senses, outrage finally hit her full force. They were monitoring his every move, restricting his time in Slytherin House and demanding insight into his most private activities. No wonder he had his friends over so often, if he wasn't allowed to visit them more than once a week and met another girl every month to not give the impression of pulling someone else into his troubles. But – as if that wasn't enough – they demanded of him to rat out his friends. They had others spying on him as well, to report on him like some dystopian Nazi government monitoring dissidents!

Hermione suddenly remembered how oddly Professor Sprout had stared in their direction this morning at the Main Entrance. Malfoy had seemed to be annoyed by the cold but know she understood that he had noticed their Herbology Professor as well. He was being watched, as if he already was a convicted criminal, when he had only been the scapegoat for his father's failure and had faced the Wizengamot out of his own volition afterwards.

Even if it already was pretty late already and Hermione felt tired from the trip to Hogsmeade, she left the Head's common room to pay her friends a visit in Gryffindor Tower. Taking a short cut through the narrow staircase behind the tapestry of the Sneezing Sea Serpent, she made her way upwards.

Harry and Ron were tangled in an intense round of Exploding Snap with Neville and Colin, when Hermione found them in their usual corner by one of the ancient stained windows with diamond shaped panes.

Hermione didn't sit down when Neville offered her a chair next to him, but waited for them to finish the round. She stood behind Harry instead, silently watching and concentrating on staying alert despite her tiredness. The air was warm and heavy up in the tower, heated by the large fireplace. She desperately wanted to sit down or even lay down to get some rest from this trying day, but she was on a mission and couldn't afford to relax before she had consulted her best friends on this matter.

Ron looked up at her, when they were collecting the cards after finishing the round to shuffle them anew. "Do you need us, 'Mione?" he asked and she looked up from the cards he rifled expertly in his hands in a hypnotizing manner.

Hermione woozily stared at him, looking back at her expectantly, before she could shake herself out of her reverie. She nodded, incapable of speaking and rubbed her tired eyes with a long yawn.

"My, shouldn't you be in bed, if you're that tired?" Harry chuckled. "How did you even get up the tower in that state?"

Hermione only shrugged. "Let's get some fresh air, alright?" she asked in desperate need of cool air to wake her senses.

Her friends nodded and followed her through the Portrait of the Fat Lady after excusing themselves from their game.

The instant the cool air of the corridors hit her, Hermione's mind jump-started again as she remembered her original purpose for coming up to Gryffindor Tower.

"I found a letter about Malfoy's requirements. What the court decided on to keep him out of prison," she came straight to the point, when the entrance to the common room shut behind them again.

Harry shuffled, anxiously glancing at Ron. The redhead however just stared at Hermione, waiting for her to elaborate.

"They demand him to report on his friends and stuff, it's really presumptuous…" she suddenly felt unsure about her intention in the matter. Why did she care again? It was Malfoy for Merlin's sake! He deserved what was thrown his way, didn't he? But when she looked at Harry again, who was redirecting his gaze guiltily to avoid hers, something prickled in the back of her mind.

"You knew?" she observed. "You knew and you didn't tell me?" Hermione looked from Harry to Ron who just raised his hands caught in the act.

"Didn't know you cared that much about the tosser," Ron defended himself.

After all the chaos from last year, Hermione had wanted to distance herself from the stress it had caused them. Harry's constant paranoia about Malfoy being a Death Eater, his resentment as his friends for not believing him and then finding out that Malfoy really was a Death Eater and Dumbledore had known all along – it had shattered the foundations of their friendship, left them in shambles for Hermione to pick up again. She would do _anything_ to get back the unconditional trust they had shared before. She wanted to just let others sort out what was wrong with this world. But still, how could her friends expect her to just lie low when someone was treated with less respect than any human being deserved, no matter their past wrongdoings? She crossed her arms and fixated on Harry who was rubbing his neck, still not looking up from the ground.

"I knew you would overreact. You are too compassionate to let this rest, but you forget that he has close connections to other Death Eaters! Even if he didn't hurt anyone yet, he still is convicted for associating with criminals"

"But he did nothing wrong!" Hermione exclaimed exasperated.

"You think so? Do you really believe he resisted to getting the Mark? Maybe he even helped his dad to hide. How else would he be still on the loose after a _year_?" Harry questioned.

"And that excuses treating him like this? The _possibility_ of doing something illegal?"

"He's dangerous, Hermione! Can you even fathom what he is capable of? Especially here at Hogwarts? He has been raised to become a Death Eater, don't you think he was trained to be one as well?" Harry threw his hands into the air.

"So you approve of this?" she asked, looking between him and Ron, who only shrugged.

"I think it is necessary, Hermione. It is not ideal, but it serves its purpose," Harry concluded.

She shook her head. "It isn't fair and you know that."

"No it's not! But when has _he_ ever been fair? To anyone?!" Harry shouted.

Tears were clouding her view suddenly. No, he had never been fair. Especially not to her. But how could they think themselves above the Death Eaters, if they didn't even follow their own ideals.

"Listen, Hermione," Harry soothed her. "We can't change anything in this matter. It has been decided on by the Ministry and we have no influence on that decision. He hast to endure this now until he has proven himself."

"How could he ever prove the Ministry anything? They'd always find a way to make him look bad if they wanted to. They'll always find evidence against his trustworthiness. Don't tell me you forgot what they did to Sirius. Even after his death, even when it was _obvious_ that he was never working for Voldemort."

"I know," Harry said looking as conflicted as she felt about reminding him of his godfather's death. "But this is beyond our influence. There is nothing we can do about it. Don't rack your brain over this, please. This shouldn't concern you. He isn't worth it."

When Hermione only shook her head again, her friends did nothing to further pacify her on the subject. They accepted that she couldn't let go so easily when injustice was done and she was thankful that they didn't question her. She bid them good night and returned to her own dorm, feeling drained and finding it difficult to swallow the whole affair and the inequality it involved.

* * *

Hermione didn't sleep well that night. She wasn't even surprised that, when she crept down the winding stairs to their common room, holding a purring Crookshanks in a tight embrace, she found Malfoy sitting there at the table. He was writing his report furiously with the Ministry letter next to him. He didn't even look up, when she put down her cat and took a seat opposite to him, drawing up her knees and hugging them. The fire had burned down and a chill crept through the common room.

She watched Malfoy ticking off question after question from the list after scribbling his answers for the required self-report. After a while, she dared to speak in a quiet voice. "Is this court decision the reason you didn't want Isobel to be your girlfriend? Because then you'd have to report on her as well?" Hermione inquired unable to let the topic drop.

He didn't answer. He was too proud to reply, which was an obvious answer for Hermione. Malfoy's rage at her nosiness seemed to have evaporated, leaving only exhaustion in his eyes.

"You could have asked me, you know?" she said timidly. "I mean to sign that crap for you. As Head Girl I am allowed to act in the teacher's place. I could confirm your…" She pulled a face, "...commendable conduct."

"I don't need the help from a Mudblood," he told her in a tone so unmoved that it made her flinch at how soberly he used that word.

Hermione was used to him hurling it at her when he was full of rage and they were fighting to no end. But right now, he was just tired and still used that slur as if he _really_ believed her to have dirty, impure blood.

She decided to shake off the stale taste the word left. "You still have a request I owe you, remember? I would only do it because you ordered me to," she reminded him, extending the olive branch even further.

He huffed a mirthless laugh. "Sounds pretty illegal to me, Granger. Do you want to go to prison for forgery?"

"Nobody needs to know."

"Just like nobody needs to know about this whole damn thing at all. Especially not some prissy cow like you," he growled.

She tilted her head and shrugged apologetically. "I didn't mean to pry, I'm sorry."

Malfoy didn't answer which she took as a cue to make herself scarce. She had offered it and now it was his place to come to her if he wanted her help.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"That foul git. I wish I could strangle him until his pure-blooded arse turns blue!"**

 **::::::::::::**

 **I hope this whole Ministry thing isn't too confusing :D Tell me if you didn't understand something, there will be more information in the next chapters, but I'm having a hard time giving all the important information without just narrating it without any context or emotional impact...**


	13. They Listen

**Good news everyone, I found some time and motivation to write and to edit this chapter so I can even upload it a day early :)**

 **To be honest last week has been tough for me. My grandpa died and I felt like shit and then I felt like shit for letting myself go so much because he wouldn't have wanted that and then I felt like shit because I had the feeling that I used it as an excuse to hole up at home. And THAT made me feel the worst of all and I had a little breakdown. Sooo I'm back to normal now, I guess? Still not good but that takes time.**

 **Spring finally arrived and the cherry trees start to blossom wich really lifts my mood. It's my favourite time of the year :)**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"Ron, we cannot follow Malfoy around at all times. He would notice something and don't you think he's being watched enough?"**

 **"Let me try to talk to him, maybe he'll grow careless and something slips him," Hermione conceded.**

* * *

The castle was slowly engulfed in its Christmas garb. In stark contrast to the barren and cold world outside, it got cosier and prettier with every day. The decorations slowly took over the castle from the torches on the walls, to suits of armour and across the four House Tables.

It was on an especially icy Monday, that the coldness beyond Hogwarts' Gates seemed to seep through the cracks in the windowsills and stone walls. An unnatural chill haunted the students in the corridors as they hurried from heated classroom to heated classroom and avoided strolling through the halls for longer than necessary.

For the third time, Hermione reread the introduction for her Herbology homework, when a ticking noise came from the window next to her.

"Ron, Pig's brought a letter!" Ginny called her brother as she opened the tower window and the tiny owl fluttered inside.

The usually chirpy bird settled exhausted on the table Hermione was occupying in the Gryffindor common room and fluffed its feathers, relishing the warmth of the fire the students had stoked up high that day.

Ron jumped up from his place in one of the stuffed armchairs and carefully picked up his owl. Little Pig snuggled into his warm hands and obediently stretched out its tiny foot to let Ron pluck off the rolled parchment bound to its leg.

"It's for you as well, Ginny," Ron said frowning at the addressee written on the unrolled letter.

His sister stepped closer and leaned over the letter next to him.

Hermione was about to turn back to her essay, when Pig hooted softly and she noticed Ron's hand holding the parchment had started to shake slightly.

"Ginny?" Harry asked, approaching the read headed siblings staring at the letter. "Are you okay?" He raised his hand to place it on her shoulder, when the younger girl suddenly twisted away.

"Don't touch me, Potter!" she snarled and Harry recoiled. Ginny turned and fled up the stairs to the girls' dorms.

Harry's gaze flickered between the stairs and Ron until it settled on Hermione who gave him a look of commiseration. She got up from her place, her homework forgotten, and went around the table to stand beside her best friend.

"Ron, what happened?" Hermione asked carefully.

He looked up from the letter at her and Harry. "It's Percy," he said. "He's in St. Mungo's."

* * *

The castle bustled with the news reaching the school via owl post the next morning. The Daily Prophet featured a page-covering issue about the incident that took place in London the night before. The Weasley siblings were missing from their classes that day, fuelling the rumours passed from student to student.

* * *

"Don't get me wrong, I like Percy least of all my brothers," Ron glanced at his sister, "- and Ginny. But that smartarse finally proved why he ended up in Gryffindor. He would be a real hero if he only had succeeded. But let's not forget it's Percy we're talking about," he shrugged and Ginny elbowed him while she tried to hide a grin. The Weasley siblings were surrounded by a flock of Gryffindors in their common room, having arrived from their visit to St. Mungo's in the late afternoon. Everyone was eager to get the latest news first-hand and had therefore hauled the redheads away to question them thoroughly.

"Ron," Seamus called over the head of Colin Creevey, who had taken out his camera shooting a photograph of Ron as if he was the latest star at Hogwarts. "How did Percy even find that wanker when even the Aurors haven't managed to trace him after months?"

"He's been working on researching Malfoy's business connections for the hunt on him," Ron answered, eager to sate the mob's curiosity. "Apparently there was some incongruity in the files so my smarty pants brother decided to go to one of the phantom companies after work to have a look at it. Hit the unicorns-eye, the lucky sod. Found himself face to face with the Death Eater and he didn't hide or run. My idiot brother thought he could capture Lucius Malfoy on his own! If he had called for backup, the man would have been long gone by the time they arrived, so he outright battled with him. Well, he did manage to hit him with some hexes. That's what he says, at least. But you don't fight a Death Eater and win, when you're only a pencil pusher." Ron told the tale like it was already a decades old myth. "End of story: Malfoy escaped again, hopefully he got a good dressing-down and Percy was brought to St. Mungo's, nearly unconscious but alive. Mum had a fit, when he explained what had happened. I wasn't sure if she wanted to strangle Percy for his rashness and stupidity or hunt Malfoy down herself to give the man a piece of her mind for hurting her baby boy."

Hermione patted Ron on the arm when Dean and Seamus continued to bombard him with questions about his heroic brother. The attention made Ron blush as if he had been the one facing Lucius Malfoy and was now getting all the credit himself.

* * *

When Hermione followed her friends to potions class the next day, she caught a glimpse of Malfoy talking to Professor Snape and then quickly stuffing a sheet of paper into his pocket, before he settled into his seat at the back of the class. Hermione assumed that their Professor had just signed Malfoy's monthly report for the Ministry. He must have been really sneaky for her to catch on to this only now. They shared several classes and the term had started more than two months ago. Usually she witnessed his mail arriving, having opened the window in their common room several times for owls.

Hermione glanced up from her potion Draught of the Living Death at Malfoy, wondering how he managed to hide the troubles his injunctions were causing him so well. That was, when she observed him dropping powdered Bicorn Horn into a cauldron that wasn't his. Hermione paled when only seconds later the contents started to foam. In that moment Ron turned back from his workbench where he had been cutting Snapping Weed, witnessing the bubbles soar with wide eyes.

"Mr Weasley, what do you think this is? We are not preparing your mother's stew here," Snape sneered at the foul odour emitting from Ron's over boiling cauldron. That was when Ron's potions partner Terry Boot returned from the storage room, staring shocked at their ruined potion. By now the substance had a sticky, rubber-like substance, crawling down the sides of the cauldron. Ron had turned a violent shade of red, staring mortified at his potion.

"This is the third time your potion did not meet the expectations, Mr Weasley. I advise you to get a tutor to prevent a repeat performance. Otherwise I will have no qualms dismissing your incompetent presence from my class forever," Snape threatened in his oily drawl and continued to deduct point from Gryffindor as well as Ravenclaw, as Terry had been neglecting his potion and left it in the care of "this imbecile". The Ravenclaw only shook his head at Ron in frustration.

Hermione had to bite her lip hard to not speak to Ron's defence. Professor Snape would view her accusation of Malfoy as a personal offence against his authority rather than seeing reason. She had witnessed this kind of incidents often enough to be used to Gryffindors being the least favourite students of the gloomy Potions Master. She bristled however at the implication of Ron not being allowed to finish the class. Professor Snape had never before threatened to fail a student their education this actively. Hermione knew that Ron needed his Potions N.E.W.T. to have a chance at becoming an Auror like he had dreamed of together with Harry. It was moments like these that she could strangle Malfoy, who was watching the situation with a gleeful expression, despite the pity she felt for him being watched so closely by the Ministry. He was Head Boy now and was supposed to have grown up!

* * *

Even though Percy was recovering quickly and no permanent damage had been done, the incident served to spur on Ron's hostility towards Malfoy. Furthermore, Malfoy didn't refrain from provoking him at every opportunity by repeatedly sabotaging his school performance. He went as far as spilling ink over Ron's schoolbooks and stealing his homework out of his satchel only to let them lie around the Head Common Room in obvious places for Hermione to find after the class they had to be handed in for. It was childish, really. Hermione didn't understand the personal vendetta Malfoy was leading against Ron, who hadn't had any hand in his brother tracking down Lucius at all. It wasn't his fault that Malfoy had a Death Eater as a father.

* * *

"Draco, what was he doing there? He knew it wasn't safe," they heard Theodore Nott's voice floating through the hallways. Ron and Hermione halted in their tracks and stood still as stone, listening carefully.

"How the fuck do I know? He's been around some since that Ministry shit, I guess he was running out of places to go, it's been a year after all," Malfoy replied to his friend. The two Slytherins were walking the corridor at the end of the passage Hermione and Ron were using. They had been on their way down to Hermione's common room where she had forgotten Ron's homework. He had asked her to review it before handing it in, knowing how meticulous Professor Snape downgraded marks for every mistake he found.

"I just hope he won't drag my father into any of this," they heard Nott continue. "I heard he's been at my home and he probably asked for support. He should know that it would only get my father into trouble. The old man's got enough on his back with the Ministry lately. No need to add the Dark Lord breathing down his neck for disobeying orders as well. We mustn't help him. Lucius is lucky to get away with his failure so easily." Nott sighed. "He shouldn't have been so careless. What if Weasley hadn't been alone?"

By now it was obvious what they were discussing. Judging by the echo of their voices, the Slytherins must have reached the tapestry of the sneezing Sea Serpent that was framed with Celtic coils, covering the passage. Hermione's heart beat furiously. She prayed that they didn't plan to use the passage as well. They would run straight into the two Gryffindors. That could only end in chaos.

"As if that nitwit had any chance of capturing my father," Draco snorted. "It's a wonder he's still alive. The world would have been better off with one less of the lot."

Hermione had to restrain Ron from bursting out of their hiding place behind the tapestry. The voices were already fading again and she wondered if Malfoy even knew about the secret passageway they were in. Why else would he be so careless to discuss this matter openly. The dungeons weren't frequented like the rest of the castle and the Head Boy must have assumed that no one was down here at this hour, she concluded.

* * *

"That foul git. I wish I could strangle him until his pure-blooded arse turns blue!"

Harry frowned and looked from Hermione to Ron and back. They had returned to the Gryffindor Common Room the instant the steps of the two Slytherins had faded, to tell Harry about the conservation they had overheard. Hermione had tried to repeat what Malfoy had told Nott, when Ron had interrupted her, still fuming in behalf of his brother.

"He wished for Percy to be dead," she explained to Harry. "Nothing new, considering his general hatred for Weasleys, one would assume," Hermione shrugged.

Harry nodded understanding. They had gotten used to Malfoy's sentiments towards them a long time ago.

"I bet he knows where his murderer of a father prowls!" Ron continued ranting. "The Prophet already wrote about him being seen close to Nott's mansion. They probably hide him there. I wonder why the Aurors didn't already turn the property upside down."

"Remember what Nott said? We don't know for sure that Lucius hides there. The ministry can't just search the homes of random Slytherins, hoping to find Death Eaters," Hermione reminded him.

"They'd need proof or at least a valid suspicion to do that," Harry agreed.

"If Malfoy - Draco I mean - knows anything then we should be able to get it out of him," Ron pondered.

"And how do you propose we do that? Not that I believe he has a clue," Hermione remarked. "He has been cut off from all means of communication and his letters are intercepted."

"They are Slytherins, they always find a way to bend the rules. He could know from Nott," Ron speculated. "They don't observe his friends as well, do they?"

"To some extent they do…" Hermione recalled, thinking about the reports Malfoy had to do on his friends.

"I bet they'd find a way around all that. We need to do something. His father nearly killed my brother, Hermione!"

She shrugged and looked helpless to Harry who held up his hands. "I'd be with Ron, but right now my schedule is full as it is. Dumbledore demands my presence three evenings a week and I've got to finish my homework sometime."

"Don't worry, mate," Ron reassured him. "We'll find out without you, right Hermione?"

"Ron, we cannot follow Malfoy around at all times. He would notice something and don't you think he's being watched enough?"

"This is about my family, Hermione! Do you think I care for that evil ferret one bit?"

"Let me try to talk to him, maybe he'll grow careless and something slips him," Hermione conceded. "I'll question Nott as well. They are quite close and Nott's a real blabbermouth when it comes to rumours and secrets."

"That's my girl!" Ron smiled widely and swung one arm over Hermione's shoulders pulling her to him. "That Head Boy is a bad influence on you, 'Mione," he grinned. "She's getting sneaky like a Slytherin, right Harry?"

"Ron!" Hermione elbowed him playfully.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"Good to see you, I actually wanted to talk to you," she informed him haughtily, hoping for Nott to catch on and telling her off, being not worthy of his precious time.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **I tried a different style with the beginning of this chapter, I hope you liked it and it made you curious :)  
Do you think Hermione will be able to get some information from Draco?**

 _This chapter is dedicated to my beta KoolStoryBro13 who provided me with some of the ideas and has helped me with my story since the beginning :)_


	14. She Spies

**Hey guys! I've changed the summary a little because the story was developing differently than I had initially planned. Sometimes I have the feeling that I'm not really the one writing the story because it just does whatever it wants :'D**

 **I know the recent chapters are short D:  
I try really hard, but I need some chapters to end on a certain point so there isn't much I can do about that other than adding useless fillers and I really don't want that. I promise there'll be longer chapters again soon, but for now I'm afraid I won't reach the usual length…**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"Ron, we cannot follow Malfoy around at all times. Let me try to talk to him, maybe he'll grow careless and something slips him," Hermione conceded. "I'll question Nott as well."**

* * *

Hermione felt conflicted about asking Malfoy personal questions for the sake of getting information from him, but on the other hand he might benefit from confiding in someone, she told herself. She doubted that his friendship with Nott was in any way strong enough to share his troubles. He was a Slytherin after all. They had friendships that promised them benefit, not emotional support. She could be someone unbiased and listen to him without judging, Hermione rationalised. He could trust her.

On Wednesday, she managed to catch Malfoy alone in their office after lessons. He had taken out his folder reserved for Head stuff and drafted approval documents for notifiable afterschool activities that had to be submitted before the holidays for the New Year.

Hermione slowly stacked her schoolbooks on her table in preparation for her homework. She watched him out of the corner of her eyes, bating her time until she had pulled out her last book. "Malfoy, I wanted to ask you, if… are you alright?" she asked cautiously before adding quickly, "I mean with your father out there, not knowing if he is well. It must be… difficult."

Malfoy looked up at her openly for a few heartbeats before he narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "What do you care?"

Hermione shrugged, unsure how to proceed without scaring him off. "I've seen you reading the article about him and Percy. And I- I know how it feels when-"

"That Weasley got what he deserved," Malfoy interrupted her. "He shouldn't have put his nose where it doesn't belong."

"I'm not asking about your opinion of Percy," Hermione frowned with what she believed to be a concerned look. "I'm asking about you."

Malfoy snorted, "Want me to lay my heart at your feet, Granger? Think again. We are not friends."

"Sometimes it is good to empty your heart, you know? I won't go around and tell on you, if you're concerned for your image. My father always said-"

Suddenly, he got angry and stood up from his place. "You are not as sneaky as you think you are, Granger. I won't fall for your subtle prying."

"I'm not- I'm not prying!" she defended herself.

"Save the lies for the two nitwits you call friends. I'm not telling you anything!" With that he got up and left without a look back, leaving his notes still skewed across his desk. Hermione sighed.

'That went well,' she thought sarcastically.

Her next target was Nott who wasn't as easy to encounter undisturbed as the Head Boy. Malfoy had noticeably withdrawn from his social activities, Hermione realised. He kept up with Quidditch practice, Head Duty and schoolwork, but his friends didn't constantly surround him. Prior to this year, they had usually covered his back at every encounter he had with the Gryffindors and sat with him during the meals. Lately, Draco could be seen walking the halls all alone mostly. It made an incredibly lonely picture.

Hermione knew she had to isolate Nott somehow to have a chance at finding out anything about Lucius Malfoy. She'd play along with his usual insults and then subtly turn the topic towards the Weasleys somehow. If she did a good job, Nott would start to insult the Weasley Clan as Blood Traitors and incapable of wielding a wand even if their life depended on it. If Nott knew anything about Lucius' whereabouts, she was sure his tongue would slip at that point. At least that was how the conversation she intended to have with him played out in her head.

To her surprise, she didn't have any trouble singling him out. In fact, he approached her of his own volition.

She was returning a borrowed book to the library before its closing time with the plan to go looking for him afterwards. He must have waited there for Hermione, knowing that she would most likely show up in her favourite place of the castle at some point of the day. She handed Madam Pince the book about the magical abilities of fabrics woven from the fur of different magical creatures she had checked out the week before. That was when Nott appeared behind her out of nowhere. Hermione nearly squealed when she was confronted with his face as she turned to leave the library again. Of course he would stand directly behind her when she was just about to go and look for him. Thinking of the devil…

Hermione glared up at the Slytherin when he let out a chuckle, clearly amused at startling her.

"Nott," she greeted him stiffly and strode past the boy, heading for the exit.

He followed her until they stepped outside the heavy oak doors and were free to talk without whispering.

"Good to see you, I actually wanted to talk to you," she informed him haughtily, hoping for Nott to catch on and tell her off for not being worthy of his precious time.

"Yeah, I guessed that," he said which threw Hermione completely off track and she had to pull herself together immensely to be able to close her gaping mouth again.

"You… did?"

Nott looked down at her with a patronising smile that raised her hackles. "Come on, Granger. I'm not that stupid. I had to listen to Draco rant about your nosiness for half an hour. I already expected you'd turn up at my doorstep after you didn't get anything from him."

Hermione balked, caught in the act. Then she narrowed her eyes, "Then pray tell me why _you_ were looking for me?"

"Because I wanted to advise you to keep out of Slytherin affairs," Nott answered, crossing his arms.

"Whatever." Hermione refused to let him get to her and turned to leave.

"Listen Granger," Nott caught her arm and pulled her back forcefully. "Draco doesn't care a bit for your bleeding heart and he's got enough on his plate right now. Stop prying into his affairs."

"What is it to you, Nott?" she challenged him, trying to free her arm from his grip.

"I'm his friend and I am the one that has to listen to him ranting every time you manage to rile him up again. He isn't allowed to so much lift a _finger_ without the Ministry noticing so he won't give you a piece of his mind himself. But I won't hold back if you don't stop meddling."

"Are you threatening me, Nott?" Hermione asked scandalised and raised her brows.

"Just a reminder that your presence here at Hogwarts is not appreciated," he replied. "I hope when you've finished your education you'll realise that it is your time to go back to your Muggle parents and stay out of our world."

"Fuck you, Nott," Hermione growled and twisted out of his grip. He might be just as mean as he usually was, but he didn't know how close his comment had hit home. There was no going back for Hermione anymore. There were no parents to return to. She had taken care of that herself, even if it had broken her heart to send them away without a single memory of their loved daughter. Now Hermione would either be part of the Wizarding World or at home nowhere.

* * *

Hermione knew that Ron would be disappointed, she had given away the only opportunity they had at finding out what Malfoy knew about his father's hiding place. She walked upwards to Gryffindor Tower downtrodden, feeling like she had failed Ron. She was afraid that he would think that she had done it on purpose because she thought the Ministry was being unfair to Malfoy. She stepped through the Portrait of the Fat Lady behind a first-year who was just in time for the curfew and cast her a worried glance, afraid she might deduce point for his tardiness. She smiled at him kindly and sent him to bed.

"Have you already found out something, 'Mione?" Ron greeted her, looking up from his Herbology homework.

Hermione couldn't help but feel a tad proud that he was working on it at this hour without her pestering him about it day in and out. But then she remembered why she was in the common room in the first place and unhappily shook her head. "I messed up, Ron. I'm sorry. They both saw right through me. I guess I wasn't as subtle as I thought."

Ron frowned. "Don't worry, we'll come up with some other way to find out what they know," he reassured her and Hermione smiled relieved. "You look tired, let's think about his tomorrow, alright?" Ron proposed and Hermione nodded thankful and bid him goodnight.

* * *

She didn't look forward to seeing Malfoy that evening anymore, but still she plopped down on the couch in their common room to read a little before going to sleep. A voice in the back of her mind screamed at her that she owed Malfoy an apology, but what exactly should she apologise for? She had asked about his well being, nothing more. She hadn't urged him to tell her anything. Sure, she had hoped to gain some information on Lucius Malfoy's whereabouts, but otherwise she had shown concern for a fellow student. That's what she was Head Girl for, right? Hermione wasn't satisfied with her reasoning. Malfoy had enough on his plate with the Ministry breathing down his neck and she had done nothing but add to that. He would be constantly wary around her now. He wouldn't have any safe space to retreat to as they shared their common room. Hermione decided to be less suspicious of him and give him more free space to breathe in future encounters. At least that pacified her conscience a little.

She didn't expect him to come out of his room anytime soon. Hermione was wrong however, seeing as he emerged from the stairs as the fire was slowly dying down and it was becoming harder to make out the letters of her book. She looked up when she heard him trudging down the steps and saw him heading for the exit.

"Where are you going?" Hermione couldn't hold back the question that halted him in his tracks.

He looked up startled as he hadn't noticed her presence and frowned. "What do you care?"

Hermione spotted the letter he was holding. "Whom are you writing to?"

Malfoy glared at her. "What do you want to know, Granger? Do you want to know what I write to my Death Eater father?" He stalked closer and rounded the couch. "Do you want to read how I congratulate him on sending that Weasley sod to St. Mungo's? Here!" He grabbed his letter opener from the coffee table and shoved the letter at her.

Hermione had no time to marvel at the little silver dagger with golden ornaments adorning the handle, when he thrust the butt of the sharp object into her hand impatiently. She was frozen.

"Go on! Open it!" he shouted, making her flinch.

Hermione's hands trembled lightly and she kept her gaze focused on Malfoy while she opened the letter carefully. She pulled out the parchment.

"Oh," she said, recognizing the sigil on top of the letter. "This is your report for the Ministry, right?"

"Now you can finally leave me the hell alone and I can go and send this fucking letter with a sodding school owl because they took my own owl away!" He ripped the letter and the dagger from her hands and tapped the envelope with his wand to repair it. Pocketing both items, he was out of the door before Hermione found her voice again.

She stared after him, unsure if she should be relieved that the letter didn't contain anything sinister or shocked that he wasn't even allowed to keep his owl.

* * *

Hermione stayed on the couch mulling the situation over in her head. He had a right to be angry at her, she surmised. Still, she wondered why he had even shown her the letter. She should probably apologise for her unjust suspicion. Again, she hadn't been able to hold keep her curiosity at bay. Even if he was Malfoy, it had been unfair to pry even more into his private life after all the reports he already had to fill out for the Ministry. Hermione decided to wait for his return to talk to him and picked up her book again, lightening some candles to continue reading.

When Malfoy didn't show up even after nearly half an hour, Hermione began to wonder what took him so long. Even if he had to go all the way up to the Owlery from the dungeons, it shouldn't have taken him more than twenty minutes to return. That was if he took the long route. There were enough shortcuts that magically skipped several storeys between the dungeons and the towers. Hermione got up and paced impatiently before she couldn't bear waiting anymore and left through the double-sided mirror to go after Malfoy.

It was late already and Hermione snuck from alcove to alcove to avoid getting caught by the teachers or Filch. She took the hidden passageway covered by the tapestry of the sneezing Sea Serpent close to the entrance to the dungeons. The vertiginous narrow steps led through a cramped passage with a low ceiling and up towards the towers. She used her wand to shine a little light ahead but kept it dim in fear someone would notice it shimmering behind the painting of the toothless werewolf that covered the exit of the passage on the other end. She heard her breath echoing from the stone walls around her unnaturally loud, it was eerie.

When she finally reached the top of the flight, she let the magic running through her wand fade until the _Lumos_ went out and carefully slipped the painting of the toothless werewolf on the upper end of the stairs aside to step out into the corridor.

She didn't manage to leave the secret passage however, as a pair of hands suddenly grabbed her arms and pushed her back into the hidden stairwell. Startled Hermione gasped for air, her hand grabbing the arm that had taken hold of her, desperate to not lose her footing and topple down the near hundred steps she had just climbed. Whoever had grabbed her, pulled her back up and shoved her against the wall.

"Didn't you spy on me enough already?" Malfoy spat at her, his wand poking into her throat. Hermione swallowed hard when she made out his eyes in the dark shadows. They were spitting hate.

"Did Weasley send you to go after me as well? That coward, hiding under this bloody cloak, thinking I'm too stupid to hear him breathing down my neck? You know what? Screw you! Screw you all, I've had enough."

He pocketed his wand again and let go of her. Hermione stared at Malfoy with wide eyes, trying to make sense of his words, when he shoved something at her. Instinctively her hands closed on the velvety fabric.

"You better go and look for your boyfriend, Granger," Malfoy sneered, before he hurried down the steps she had just climbed.

She stood rooted to the spot until he had reached the lower landing and disappeared into the corridor behind the tapestry of the sneezing Sea Serpent. Then she finally processed what he had told her. Weasley. Look for him. Ron! Where was Ron? What had he done to Ron?!

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"What did he do, oh Merlin, what has he done?" she whimpered.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **How did you like it? :) Do you know what Malfoy gave Hermione at the end of this chapter?**


	15. They Confess

**Hello guys! I'm back with another chapter :)**

 **Beta: KoolStoryBro13**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"You better go and look for your boyfriend, Granger," Malfoy sneered, before he hurried down the steps she had just climbed.**

 **Ron! Where was Ron? What had he done to Ron?!**

* * *

Hermione shoved the painting of the toothless werewolf aside, not caring for getting caught anymore and hurried to the stairs leading up to the Owlery. Groaning greeted Hermione when she reached the windy room.

"Ron!" she called.

"'Mione?" he replied from the dark. "What you doin' here?" Ron sat against the wall next to the exit, nursing a split lip.

Hermione kneeled beside him. "What happened here?"

"That tosser hit me and stole the cloak, 'Mione. He's got Harry's cloak," Ron wailed. "I couldn't do anything. He had my wand and he was holding a knife!"

"I've got the cloak, I've got it, Ron," Hermione assured him patting the velvety piece of fabric Malfoy had shoved at her in the secret passage.

"Who could have known that maniac carries a bloody knife around?"

"It was a letter opener," Hermione corrected him. She shook her head, "What were you doing here, Ron?"

"I saw him walking through the castle on Harry's map, so I thought maybe I could find out something, you know? See what he's up to so late at night," Ron looked at her with puppy eyes. "And then, even though I was under the cloak, he still managed to sense me somehow. I had to do something!"

Hermione listened to his explanation, running her fingers over the smooth fabric of the invisibility cloak she still held until she noticed something was off. She cast a _Lumos_ to get a better look at the cloak and gasped. "What did he do, oh Merlin, what has he done?" she whimpered. "Harry's cloak, look at the cloak, Ron."

A long rip went through the fabric splitting it up from the middle to the seam.

"Oh bugger," escaped Ron's lips that were still bleeding. He reached for the ripped fabric only to pull his hand back without touching it, slumping defeated. Hermione took pity in him and mended the cut on his lip with a quick healing spell. She wished she could repair the cloak as easy as that.

"I've read something about magical fabrics. I know someone who can repair this, Ron," Hermione had to swallow hard. "He'll be able to mend it, I'm sure."

Ron looked outright devastated and Hermione couldn't muster enough exasperation to scold him for his nonreflective actions.

"'Mione, it's destroyed. You can't just mend something like that, you can't replace the magic."

Hermione shook her head. "Go to bed, Ron. I'll take care of it. Please go back, don't worry."

Pulling him up, Hermione walked with him until they had to part at the portrait of the toothless werewolf, whispering a quiet goodnight before she made her way down the narrow steps of the hidden passage. She shivered slightly, having forgotten her own cloak in the hurry. The cold of the winter night seeped through the castle walls, chilling her to the bone.

* * *

The night was getting late and it was nearly three in the morning when Hermione finally reached the entrance to the kitchens, Harry's cloak clutched to her chest. She tickled the pear on the fruit bowl painting and entered the significantly warmer room.

Few house-elves were still up and busied themselves with cleaning the sinks and floor. Hermione asked one of them to fetch Dobby and hoped that the little house-elf wouldn't lose too much sleep because of her late night visit. Hell, she was losing _all_ of her sleep. She was dead tired but forced herself to stay alert as she slumped down at the replica of one of the House Tables. She didn't even care that it was the pendant to the Slytherin table she had picked. The warmth of the kitchens made her sleepy and Hermione wanted to go to bed so badly. Just a minute to relax and she'd be awake again. A short second of sleep was all she needed, she thought, blinking a bit slower to rest her tired eyes and shield them against the bright light in the kitchens. Breathing deeply, she let her head rest on her arms for a short second.

* * *

"Miss Hermione!"

Hermione startled awake, raising her head so fast it gave her a crick in the neck. "Dobby! Hi." She smiled as she rubbed her neck wincing.

"Is Miss Hermione alright? It is very late, she needs sleep," the little house-elf cast her a worried glance.

She eyed his outfit for a second, her sleep muddled mind hypnotized by the two magically animated trolls stitched to Dobby's jumper. They were hitting their counterpart's head with crocheted wooden clubs, wearing pink rhinestone-covered ties around their thick necks.

Hermione shook her head to clear her mind. "Dobby, I need your help."

"Dobby is most proud to be helping Miss Hermione, best friend of the great wizard Harry Potter!" Dobby exclaimed exited, causing Hermione to wince at his shrill voice.

She showed him the long gash in Harry's cloak, asking for his help and the loyal Elf promised to try his best. Dobby assured her that he would return it to her the next day fully restored, happy to be serving the great wizard that was Harry Potter.

Hermione thanked him relieved and bid him goodnight to finally return to her dorm and get the sleep she craved.

Reaching her room, she pulled off her clothes carelessly and tucked herself into bed only to find that she was now wide awake and no sleep claimed her that night.

* * *

When Hermione was just beginning to doze off, the sky outside already brightening gradually despite the winter season, an ear-splitting crack jolted her senses and she sat up to find Dobby standing at the end of her bed. He was still wearing the hideous troll jumper and seemed to have not closed and eye as well. Holding the neatly folded invisibility cloak in his hands, he looked at her with plate-sized, watery eyes.

"Dobby is sorry Miss Hermione, he did his best, but magic in fabric won't allow other threads woven into it. Dobby could only sew the ends together, it not hold very well either. Dobby failed saving great Mr Potter's special cloak. Dobby is a useless house-elf! Harry Potter will be most disappointed that I failed him!" he wailed, huge tears leaking from his eyes.

"No, no. Dobby, don't fret," Hermione crawled to the foot of her bed to crouch in front of the distressed house-elf. "You did your best and we appreciate that. You didn't destroy the cloak, it is not your fault."

Thanking Dobby for his help nonetheless, she made him promise to get a good day's sleep to make up for the hours he had missed. She cursed her luck that not even house-elf Magic could mend the ancient fabric. She had been so sure of its potency after reading that book about how most magical fabrics were produced by exploiting the poor little creatures. Deciding that she wouldn't get any sleep now anyhow, she started dressing.

Tangled in her tights, she cursed Malfoy, the presumptuous arse, that he had cut the cloak. But no need to cry over a spoiled potion now, Hermione told herself. She'd have to confess to Harry. He was the only one who had a right to be devastated. Hermione forbid herself the sentiment and she promised herself to never again feel pity for Malfoy. He had destroyed Harry's cloak, he deserved anything that came for him.

Reluctantly, Hermione made her way to the Great Hall, not bothering to wait for Harry and Ron who probably wouldn't be up this early. Instead of nursing her usual cup of tea, she served herself a generous amount of coffee in an attempt to fight off the tiredness that weighted heavily on her.

Neville, sitting across from her, gave her a tentative smile, but refrained from engaging Hermione in any kind of conversation as he noticed the dark circles under her eyes and her gloomy mood.

When Ron took a seat next to her, casting her a questioning glance, she shook her head and felt her stomach twist. Ron looked down at his plate and seemed unable to bring himself to eat the bacon he had just loaded onto it. His face was unusually pale making the freckles and the fresh bruise on his jar standing out clearly.

"You alright, mate?" Neville asked. "You were out pretty late last night, right? You don't look too good." He looked between Hermione and Ron worried, clearly trying to puzzle out what was wrong with the both of them. But they remained silent while glaring at their food as if it was responsible for their misery.

* * *

Lessons provided no distraction for Ron and Hermione that day. Especially History of Magic gave their minds enough leverage to wander to their failure and plague their consciousness with remorse.

They had agreed to meet with Harry in the evening in the Room of Requirements. Hermione brought the cloak there after dinner, imagining the cosy kitchen of the Burrow to create a comfortable environment. She sat at the table and waited, her gaze focused on the marks and cuts that marred the wooden surface in front of her. It didn't take long before Ron arrived with Harry in tow. He took a seat beside her, looking for support in her eyes briefly but turned away quickly.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked carefully. He was still standing, the table separating him from his friends.

Hermione bend down and carefully retrieved Harry's cloak from her bag, putting it on the table gingerly as if it would be further destroyed if handled too rough. She looked up at Harry who was frowning at the piece of fabric.

"Harry, Ron- I… _we_ got your cloak destroyed. Malfoy cut it up," Hermione confessed, fisting the fabric nervously.

Harry didn't look up, but moved forward and pulled the Invisibility Cloak from her grasp to hold it up. The seams, where Dobby had tried to mend it, were clearly visible on the inside, standing in stark contrast to the smooth magical fabric. The stitches seemed loose, unable to hold together the lacy cloth properly. Ron and Hermione stared at their friend, waiting for a reaction - for him to lash out and swear at them. Harry however remained silent, his fingers running along the long cut on his father's heirloom.

"We're sorry, Harry," Hermione mumbled, her head hanging low.

Harry wordlessly tried on the cloak, disappearing beneath it. The seam was visible as a thin threat that seemed to float in the air. It moved towards the table, a chair scraped along the ground and Harry plopped down, the cloak falling to his shoulders.

"It still works, kind of," he conceded, not looking into his friends' faces.

"I think I need some time alone," he said and Hermione nodded understanding.

She pulled Ron up and pushed him towards the exit. He was reluctant to go, glancing back at Harry. Their friend had slumped in his chair, his face in his hands. Hermione continued to push Ron through the door. When it had closed behind them, she turned to him and patted his arm. "Give him some time."

Harry withdrew from his friends for a few days, not talking much to anyone and keeping to himself in between classes. After classes at the end of the week, he approached Hermione and told her that it wasn't their fault, that he wasn't angry at them. She hugged him and apologised again for being unable to repair it and he reassured her with a small smile that he would live.

* * *

On the morning of the fourth advent, one week before the holidays, the trio had an unhurried extended breakfast before heading to the library like they did every day recently. Harry and Ron were just starting to wake up when the owls swept into the Great Hall with the morning post. Hermione paid the delivery owl for the recent issue of the Prophet and passed the enclosed Witch Weekly over to Ginny who stole a glance at Harry who himself was looking up at her with an agonized expression. Instead of finally get over with it and talk to Harry, she turned away quickly and sat with Lavender and Parvati a few seats down the table to share the tabloid with the girls. Hermione shook her head at their enthusiasm about something so shallow.

Her gaze, however, got caught on the front matter of the newspaper in front of her and she grabbed the Prophet excitedly. That was a turn of events indeed! She thought after reading the article with rapt attention. She elbowed Ron next to her and shoved the newspaper at him to read the title page as well.

In her peripheral view she sensed a commotion at the Slytherin Table and looked over to see Theodore Nott leaving the Hall in long strides, an issue of the Prophet in his hands. Malfoy was nowhere in sight.

* * *

That evening, Sadie brought Hermione a missive from Professor McGonagall, asking her for a meeting in her office. When Hermione arrived, she registered to her great surprise the presence of a second person in the office of her Transfiguration teacher.

He only nodded in greeting at her and stood to the side while she took a seat.

"Miss Granger, I summoned you to talk about the upcoming holidays. As you know at least one of the Head Students has to stay to help the teachers keep everything in order." Professor McGonagall filled her in.

"Malfoy volunteered I think," Hermione confirmed. "He already signed his name on the list for holidays."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "As the Prophet has stated, Mr Malfoy's father has been caught and is now standing for trial and will most likely be sent to Azkaban."

"I've read that, too," Hermione said, looking down at her hands. Was that the reason why Professor Snape was here as well?

"Because of this situation I - as well as Severus - believe that it would do Mister Malfoy good to have company while staying over for Christmas." Professor McGonagall added, looking at Hermione expectantly.

She shrugged. "I guess some of his Slytherin friends will stay behind as well."

Professor McGonagall nodded but didn't seem satisfied. "I know that it is a great request to make, but I would like for you to remain at the castle as well."

Hermione looked at her and then over to Professor Snape. "You mean… Malfoy and I-, I mean we are not really friends or even get along at all," she stuttered. Snape should know that best!

"Miss Granger, I am aware about your relationship. But sometimes it is not easy to let friends in on what bothers one. We don't hold up our hopes for Mister Malfoy to seek anyone's support, but we want him to have the opportunity to take it whenever he might need it. You are kind and caring, and I am sure he knows that as well."

Hermione felt overwhelmed. She hadn't really thought about what he might feel and think about his father's situation and if it was troubling him. When she had asked him to get information from him, he had seemed so uninterrupted and clinical. Nothing could ever distress Malfoy, right? And if so, what was her place to invade on something so private, and for someone like him it indeed must be an untouchable topic even for his closest acquaints. She didn't quite know how to reply but, unable to let Professor McGonagall down as this topic seemed to occupy her greatly, she agreed. Professor Snape seemed as sceptical as herself, but he didn't offer his piece of mind to the topic.

Mulling over in her head how to proceed, Hermione returned to her dorm. When she passed the bathroom on the first floor, she was pulled out of her musings as she heard someone crying. She pulled herself together to fulfil her role as Head Girl and marched inside to inquire who was in trouble and to help them.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"He told me!" she wailed. The girl's shoulders shook when she sobbed even harder and hid her face in her hands.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **I'm apologising beforehand, but I won't be able to upload the next two weeks because I'm taking a short vacation to Scotland. I'm going to visit the Glenfinnan Viaduct or how you probably know it: the famous Harry Potter Bridge :')  
But I'll make sure to answer to your lovely reviews! :)**

 **How do you think will Draco feel when he finds out about his father being caught?**  
 **Who do you think is crying in the bathroom?**


	16. She Grieves

**I'm back from my trip to Scotland and decided to give you an early update instead of waiting until it's weekend :) I will try to go back to my old schedule so the next updates might be slightly irregular, but the chapters are prepared and just need their last editing, I promise :)**

 **This is one of my favourite chapters as well as my most feared one. I want to thank my beta KoolStoryBro for her compliments on this chapter and hope you'll like it just as much :)**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Hermione returned to her dorm. When she passed the bathroom on the first floor, she heard someone crying.**

* * *

Sitting by the basins on the cold floor was a girl Hermione had never seen crying before, which shocked her deeply.

"Ginny!"

The redhead looked up at her, the tears not stopping to flow.

"He told me!" Ginny wailed. "Ron told me why he and Harry went to London!" The girl's shoulders shook when she sobbed even harder and hid her face in her hands. "I don't accept his apology and then he goes and does stupid things and nearly gets himself killed just because I am a bad girlfriend!" she moaned into her hands.

Hermione carefully sat down next to her, wincing at the coolness of the stone floor.

"No, it's definitely notyour fault that the boys are the biggest idiots in the world," she comforted the younger girl.

"This happened just because we broke up, you can't tell me it didn't! Oh, what should I do?" Ginny asked defeated, still not looking up.

"It's no use to make up with Harry just because you feel bad about that, when you are clearly still mad at him. That will only postpone the argument to the next occasion." Hermione told Ginny and handed her a handkerchief she quickly summoned from thin air.

It was difficult to say what she truly believed, instead of helping Harry by coaxing Ginny to apologise. Hermione wanted nothing more than for Harry to feel better again. He was so withdrawn lately that she hardly recognised him at times. Whatever had prompted him into breaking up with Ginny, it seemed to haunt him ever since.

"Just, I don't know, try to find out what is the root of the problem and try dealing with that instead of ignoring it. Harry made his step, but it is okay to not fall back into his arms the second he apologises. He hurt you and you need to get over that first."

Ginny wiped away her tears and blew her nose before looking at Hermione with red eyes. "You know… I'm sorry about what I said to Harry about you. I mean about him turning into you because he didn't have time for me anymore. You weren't meant to hear that, obviously. I didn't know you were in the Gryffindor Common Room. You hadn't been there for weeks. I'm sorry about that…" She trailed off realizing that her apology didn't get any better. Looking down at her hands, she admitted, "It's true, you are in the library 24/7… But you aren't so bad, you know?" Ginny laughed and then started to cry again.

Hermione patted her shoulder, unsure what to make out of this half arsed apology. It'd have to do, she surmised, realizing that she wasn't mad at Ginny. Hermione could understand where she was coming from. She spend more time learning with Harry than Ginny did. He washer boyfriend. Well, not right now. But it wasn't her place to judge. Ginny would have to decide how to deal with the situation. For the first time Hermione could let go, could let others figure out their problems on their own. It was okay if they didn't manage it, Hermione realized. It wasn't her place to intervene.

* * *

In the evening Hermione sat in her common room, writing a letter to Mrs Weasley, excusing herself from the planned stay at the Burrow for Christmas. She knew that the kind woman would be sad to not have her over, probably already having prepared a knitted jumper in pretty gift wrapping.

"Granger, where's my letter opener?" Malfoy asked her gruffly, turning over the decorative pillows on their couch in search for it.

"How should I know?" Hermione answered over her shoulder, not caring a tad.

"You bloody cleaned up again! You must have put it somewhere, where it doesn't belong."

"I wouldn't touch your stuff," she dismissed him, crossing out the paragraph she had just written and started her letter anew to make it sound kinder and more apologetic.

"Really? Because every time I enter our office you've rearranged my books on the shelf! So don't fucking lie to me, Mudblood."

She looked up at his aggressiveness. "What's the matter with you? It's not myfault that you can't find your belongings. Don't vent your anger on me, Malfoy."

"I'll do whatever I damn well please!"

"Well, what do you want me to do? I'm definitely not helping you search for you effin dagger! You shouldn't even be allowed to have something dangerous like that," she growled.

"Oh, you want to call the Aurors now?" he mocked spitefully.

Hermione refused to answer to that and simply shook her head. Returning to her letter she heard him rummaging the room behind her, swearing under his breath. That blasted thing better be lost forever. After all it was responsible for destroying Harry's Invisibility Cloak.

Hermione wondered why Malfoy was even allowed to bring a dagger like that. The Ministry was constantly watching him and probably had searched his luggage before letting him board the Hogwarts Train. She couldn't fathom why she had felt pity for him before. Since the incident a few days ago, she was convinced that the Ministry had been right to keep a close watch over Malfoy. Who knew what else he had smuggled into Hogwarts!

* * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione spent their last afternoon before the Christmas holidays together in the Head's Common Room. Crookshanks was out hunting mice and Malfoy had chosen to stay clear of them when they had entered and spread in front of the fireplace. Harry and Ron were both disappointed that Hermione wasn't going to join them to the Burrow, but she had explained that Professor McGonagall had requested her presence at Hogwarts for Head Girl duty and they understood.

They were packed with biscuits and mince pies from Dobby, whom they had visited in the kitchen that morning to deliver their presents for him to open later. Leaning back on the sofa, they relaxed for probably the first time that school year. That is, until Hermione started to compose studying timetables for their holidays. After some moaning and complaining, she took into consideration that they would use the break to recover from the recent stress they had in school. But she managed to persuade her boys to at least tryto not forget anything over the holidays.

"We don't need any of that History of Magic stuff when we're going to face Voldemort!" Ron complained when Hermione scolded him for admitting that he slept through most of Professor Binns' lessons.

"Well, you could simply bore himto death with old Binns' lectures, Harry," Ron proposed. "I'd be over in no time! But I guess Binns was already there when old Voldie was in school, so he survived that just fine…" They shared a laugh at the image of Voldemort having to listen to Professor Binns' endlessly boring monologues.

"In 1677 the Goblins hit their pinkie on a sleeping troll and in 1695 they whacked their heads with their great aunt's knickers." Ron mimicked in a nasal and monotone voice, an octave above his usual tenor.

Hermione threw a pillow at Ron, despite laughing at his perfect impersonation of Professor Binns with hanging eyelid and all. But then she realized that Harry had sunken into deep thought and she eyed him anxiously. He had spent a lot of time with the Headmaster lately and she suspected they were discussing the upcoming war and Harry's role in it. It was worrying her gravely.

A gloomy mood settled over them and smothered all ease they had felt just moments ago. They stared into the fire pensively while the outside world turned dark until the fiery glow warming their faces remained the only light.

"I want to tell you something," Harry broke the silence that had enveloped the three of them. "It's something Dumbledore told me."

Hermione and Ron shared a look while their friend was still staring into the fire.

"Are you allowed to share that information with us?" Hermione asked quietly when Harry didn't continue immediately.

He just shrugged. "It's about me so it's my choice."

"Boy, you're frightening me," Ron said, his eyes wide as he stared at his best friend.

"Yeah," Harry answered. "It frightens me as well." His voice broke at the last word and Hermione grabbed his hand to hold on tight.

"We are here, Harry. We will always be here for you," she reassured him.

"But I won't," he said shaking his head. "I won't always be there, Hermione."

"What do you mean?" Ron asked. "We won't let you hunt those Horcruxes on your own, Harry."

"No it's not about that. Well, kind of, but not in the way you think." Harry didn't look at either of them. "I… I have to die," he croaked out.

Hermione didn't react at first, she didn't quite understand what he had just said.

Harry finally raised his eyes from where his hand clasped Hermione's. "I'm one of them, Dumbledore said. I'm a Horcrux. I have to die to finally defeat him." His voice shook slightly, but his eyes were piercing and strong. He was so brave. To speak this fact aloud. To accept this.

Hermione wasn't. She wasn't brave like her friend. She shook her head. No.

No, she didn't believe him at all. She looked at Ron but he was just sitting there, his gaze directed at Harry. How could hebelieve this? Why didn't he say anything? Make a silly joke and this would be forgotten. This was not funny, Harry. It wasn't funny at all!

"No, Harry," she croaked. "No, tell me this isn't true. It's not true."

Harry shook his head sadly and squeezed her hand harder.

"Why? Why is this happening? This is not fair!" She jumped up from her place next to Harry and pulled her hand free. "How can you just sit there calmly and accept this? Don't just give up! DO something! There is another way. There mustbe another way! We will find something we can do. I'll research everything, read every book there is and we'll find a solution. We can get it out of you. I'm sure it's possible! Ron, we will, right? Why don't you say anything? Don't you have something to say? We will find a solution!"

Harry looked up at her sadly and only shook his head again. "No, Hermione. It has to be this way."

"Nothing is written in stone, Harry!" she objected.

"Do you think I don't know that?!" he suddenly raised his voice. "Don't you think I'd rather run away and let Voldemort be the master of the fucking universe if he wants to? But I can't Hermione! I can't leaveyou, I can't leave anyoneto this fate!"

Tears ran down his cheeks and Hermione's heart shattered. How could she be so selfish to question him? How could she ever believe he just accepted this situation? He was conflicted and broken over this, she'd never seen him look so vulnerable. And she was so presumptuous to think she could help, that she could rectify anything. Anything that Dumbledore hadn't already considered. If Dumbledore couldn't fix this, no one could. Not even the brightest witch of their age. Not even her.

She crumbled at this. Feeling Ron's arms around her mid, holding her up, her legs gave in. She cried. Cried for her friend and at her own failure.

Oh, how she had failed him. Poor Harry. Her wonderful, brave Harry!

Ron guided her back to the couch where they all sat next to each other and Harry held her tight to him. She gasped for air, when the tears threatened to choke her. He gave her all the strength she didn't have, that she couldn't even muster for him.

"This isn't goodbye, Hermione. We've still got time," he told her and pushed a stray curl out of her face, that stuck to the teary tracks on her cheeks.

"This is not fair Harry. You don't deserve this. Nobody does," she cried.

"I know. But it has to be. It will be for good. When all the other Horcruxes are destroyed, he will die only if I die before."

Hermione had the fleeting wish to never find the remaining Horcruxes. If they would just stay hidden Harry wouldn't have to go. Maybe they could just kill Voldemort and condemn him into the bodiless existence he had lived in before his return. But Hermione remembered how much grief Voldemort had caused in that form as well, how many lives and dreams he had destroyed when he was still just barely alive.

She hadn't known Professor Quirrell that well, but Harry's description of his crumbling body after he had touched him had chilled her to the bone. And then there had been Ginny, poor little Ginny, all on her own and the awful things Tom Riddle's diary had made her do. Hermione knew that Voldemort would try to return as long as he existed.

There was no other way in stopping him than for Harry to die. Her Harry, who was so in love with his best friend's sister that he suffered by only looking at her since their breakup. Harry, who had fought for his godfather's freedom, who had witnessed his parent's murderer return from the dead, who had lead them all in their fight against the oppressive regime of Dolores Umbridge. Harry, who had dreamed of becoming an Auror once. He had dreamed of fighting injustice forever. He had probably dreamed of spending his life with Ginny. There would be no dreams to fulfil now.

"How long? How long have you known?" she whispered.

"For a while now." He looked into the fire pensively. "Since I broke up with Ginny."

"You pushed her away so she wouldn't be hurting so much, didn't you?"

He nodded.

"She does hurt and she will hurt even more when she finds out eventually," Hermione told him.

"I know. I realized that when I saw how devastated she looked. I want to make it up to her. I will explain it to her and I hope she will understand."

"I hope she'll react better than I did, Harry," Hermione said sheepishly, still wiping at her splotchy, tear-stained cheeks. She looked over at Ron. "How can you be so strong?"

"I think I knew," Ron said, focussing on his hands. He looked up at Harry and the both of them seemed to come to an agreement with one single gaze. Of course Ron had suspected something. He knew what plagued Harry in his nightmares as well as in his waking hours. He had been there for his friend this entire year, so much closer than Hermione could have been. Ron was a real friend. Ron was always there for him. At that she started to cry again and Harry hugged her tightly.

"Is that why you knew that it was one of the Horcruxes?" Hermione suddenly remembered what had happened in their summer holidays at Grimmauld Place. "I mean the Locket. We would have thrown it away with all the other trash if you hadn't stopped me. You said that you could feel that it was alive."

He nodded. "It was like heartbeat and it felt very sinister somehow."

"I really hope we'll continue to stumble over those blasted Horcruxes randomly, because I don't have a clue where the rest could be," Ron said.

They stayed together until late at night, when Malfoy had already returned, slipped past them quietly and locked himself in his bedroom.

Usually, she would have thrown out her friends to get back to Gryffindor Tower before curfew, but Hermione didn't want to let them go just then. She was tired, but she had the feeling that if she went to bed now, Harry would disappear like a bittersweet dream in the morning. So she savoured the comfort of their company until she could barely keep her eyes open.

* * *

Hermione wished her friends goodbye the next morning in the Entrance Hall, where they were waiting with their heavy trunks for the carriages to take them to Hogsmeade. She held onto Harry for life, making him promise to come back safely as if he wasn't about to go on a cosy Christmas holiday but a lifelong adventure trip.

When they had left, she went up the castle's thousand stairs to the Owlery and sent her presents to the Weasleys and to Harry. She felt bad about Harry's gift. How could she send him something so meaningless as a little trinket, when he would give her so much. When he would give his life for them all.

She went to her bed that night, dry of tears and feeling hollow from grief. She sighed gratefully when Crookshanks hopped onto her bed and offered his comforting presence.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **Squeezing her eyes shut to suppress the tears, she pulled herself together before she picked up the next present. It was a small, long box with the most beautiful wrapping she had ever seen.**

 **"Malfoy, what is this?" she asked shocked, pushing the offending box towards him, touching it only with her fingertips like it was something explosive.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **I hope this chapter explained Harry's behaviour and his break-up with Ginny. I hope this chapter made you both laugh and cry :')**

 **How do you like Ginny? I tried to give her character some depth. And what do you think about poor Harry's fate and how he and his friends deal with it?**

 _Thank you Fantasticlavendercrystals for your super-review-combo and the long discussions!_


	17. She Comforts

**A/N:**

 **I have realised some time ago that I need to clear things up a little concerning 6** **th** **year. I was looking for a natural way to add it to the story and didn't want to explain it in an author's note. I have finally found a place where this information fits well and added it to chapter 4. For those loyal readers who have been reading for quite some time now I'll add the Paragraph here so you won't have to go back and search for it:**

"Truth was, despite handing himself over to the Ministry for taking the Dark Mark and Dumbledore assuring them that he had never actively worked for Voldemort, Hermione didn't trust Malfoy. Not even with the simple task of supervising youngsters. He was born into this legacy of fanaticism and hate and just because Voldemort didn't care to make use of his newest member, Malfoy was still the same bully he had been at eleven."

 **There will be more details in the next chapter as well. I hope this clears up some things :) If there are still open questions, feel free to write me!**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Hermione wished her friends goodbye in the Entrance Hall, where they were waiting with their heavy trunks for the carriages to take them to Hogsmeade. She held onto Harry for life, making him promise to come back safely as if he wasn't about to go on a cosy Christmas holiday but a lifelong adventure trip.**

* * *

When Hermione woke up on Christmas morning, she pushed her depressing thoughts aside. She had promised Harry to enjoy Christmas, which would make him happy as well. Who was she to turn away a dead man's wish? It felt like he had already vanished and she had to splash freezing cold water in her face to hush these thoughts eating away at her. Her eyes still felt raw and her lips were chapped from her worriedly chewing on them. It was hard to shake off the stale feeling in her mouth that Harry's confession had left.

She didn't change out of her PJs before trudging down the stairs. She wanted to be as comfortable as possible and wouldn't change her tradition of unwrapping her Christmas presents right after getting up. After all there was nothing else traditional about this Christmas. No family reunion, no celebration with friends, no joy and new hopes for the new year.

Malfoy already occupied their common room, sitting in front of a small pile of presents by the fireplace. He looked up and sneered at her attire, he himself being dressed impeccably as always. She simply ignored his critical gaze.

"Merry Christmas, Malfoy," she wished him and found her own presents on the other side of the fireplace where her furball of a Familiar was greeting her with a meow. She sat down on the carpet and leaned against the couch, her fingers scratching Crookshanks' ears. Malfoy didn't wish her a merry Christmas himself, but she hadn't expected he would.

"Sitting on the ground now like the low Muggle you are?" he jeered at her, but when she didn't rise up to his comment, he simply picked up one if his presents and pulled off the red ribbon.

Quietly, they started to unwrap their presents. She desperately wished for the slow jazz music her dad always put on on Christmas Mornings. Just a little familiarity to remind herself that today was indeed Christmas.

Hermione had received many of the books she had wished for and Harry had gifted her a delicate necklace with a small charm in the form of a looked expensive and Hermione realized that this was something he wanted her to have to remember him by. Her lungs were squeezing painfully and breathing got harder. It was so _hard_ to not break out in tears right there in front of Malfoy. Luckily, he was occupied with his own presents, frowning at a letter he had unfolded from one of the boxes and didn't notice Hermione's distress when she wrapped her arms around her knees and rested her head on top of them.

She had to breath in and out to control her arching heart, clutching the small charm to her chest. Squeezing her eyes shut to suppress the tears, she pulled herself together before she picked up the next present.

It was a small, long box with the most beautiful wrapping she had ever seen. The ribbon seemed to be sparkling in different colours depending on how it was held into the light. She gingerly slipped it off to preserve it and lifted the lid of the box.

In awe, Hermione stared down at a beautiful swan quill with a golden tip. She was thrown off balance by the little note written in long elegant letters accompanying the present.

"Malfoy, what is this?" she asked shocked, pushing the offending box towards him, touching it only with her fingertips like it was something explosive.

Staring at it for a while, he looked at the enclosed note and back at the little box and when Hermione didn't think she'd get an answer anymore, he looked up. "My mother got you a present."

"Yes, I can see that!" she screeched, now clearly panicking.

What the _hell_?!

Slowly, a grin formed on his face, as something seemed to dawn on him. "I didn't tell her the Head Girl was a Mudblood. She's got no clue it's you."

Hermione huffed. "Now I feel assured. I thought the world turned topsy-turvy for a moment."

Imagine that! Narcissa Malfoy packing this beautiful quill, tying the bow with her delicate Pureblood hands to gift it to a Mudblood. Hermione guffawed at that image, causing Malfoy to raise an eyebrow at her.

"You better write her a thank you note or she will be most upset," he told her. "Just try to sign very illegible so she won't have a meltdown when she discovers who you are."

"You wish!" she laughed.

Oh, how she would love to witness that!

"Just a simple advice," he shrugged. "She might send back a howler or something poisonous if she finds out that her beloved son is forced to share his Head's Rooms with a Mudblood."

She could imagine that too well.

Putting the beautiful gift aside, Hermione checked the Weasley twins' present for hexes before opening it slowly. She smiled at the postscript Fred had added at the bottom of their Christmas card, claiming to having fought George tooth and nail to not send her anything dangerous, but guessing correctly that she would have checked before opening anyway.

* * *

After dinner - at which the Hogwarts Elves had outdone themselves in Hermione's opinion and for that she intended to thank them personally the next day - the sixth and seventh years of the remaining students were invited to join the Christmas celebrations of the teachers in the Staff Room. It was decorated with mistletoes Hermione avoided like the plague and golden bells with huge blue ribbons hanging from a Christmas tree with heavy, rich green branches.

It was a small but busy affair with the teachers sharing funny stories about their own years at Hogwarts and their more recent teaching career. Hermione was invited to a game of Wizard's Chess by Professor McGonagall and had to ask Professor Flitwick for advice to stand any chance against her Head of House. Ron would have loved to play against someone so deft at this game!

After the second match, which she played against Ernie, Hermione excused herself for a short break to go to the bathroom.

On her way through the halls, she spotted Professor Snape standing in a corner just around the Staff Room talking insistently to a pensive and gloomy looking Malfoy. She frowned when he handed Malfoy a letter who took it and turned to leave. Hermione wondered where he was heading this early in the evening, they had to show their face as Head Students!

When she returned to the celebration after splashing some cold water in her neck to cool down, Malfoy still hadn't come back. Professor Snape served himself a Firewhisky, which he downed in one go, Hermione observed. Watching their usually composed Potions Master drinking alcohol was strange. Whatever he had talked about with Malfoy - it seemed to frustrate him deeply. Hermione was intrigued.

Hermione and Malfoy were handed a box full of chocolates and gift cards for Tomes and Scrolls from the teachers who had clubbed together for the Head Students. The gesture moved Hermione and she smiled broadly, when Professor McGonagall handed it over to her. Malfoy was still absent so Hermione accepted the present in his place as well and promised to share with him when she thanked every teacher personally. Later, there was even punch to drink a toast to Hogwarts keeping them warm in this cold season.

When it was getting late and Hermione was becoming tired from playing too much chess and having too much punch, she let her gaze wander over the celebration to find that Malfoy still hadn't returned. This was unlike him. He viewed his duties – even the pleasant ones like attending this party – as top priority. She wondered what had been so important that he had simply left. She wondered if he would come back at all.

Taking out her Joint Mirror, Hermione tapped the glass lightly and waited for the surface to clear and show his face, but it stayed dull and dark.

She looked over at Professor Snape who was sitting alone in a corner. The Potions Master looked back at her and shook his head slightly as if he had read her mind. He looked worried and that alone scared Hermione the most. She had never seen him display such an emotion or any emotion at all so openly. Quickly bidding her teachers goodnight, she left to go and look for Malfoy.

'Miss Granger! Watch out!"

Hermione whirled around in the corridor, wand drawn. She found herself looking at a wide-eyed and extremely pale looking Professor Trelawney.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked frightened and turned about, looking for the threat. "Did something happen?"

"Oh, Miss Granger. So young and yet your soul is hurting for thousand lives. Watch out, or your heart might shatter from compassion, my child. There are people we can't save."

"What?" Hermione asked irritated. Had the old hag really given her a scare just to twaddle about her stupid forecasts? That woman couldn't even get the weather right if she looked out a window!

"Don't worry about me, I'm doing perfectly fine, Professor Trelawney." She turned to continue her search for Malfoy. Behind her, the flimsy teacher continued mumbling, but Hermione ignored her.

* * *

She found him alone, sitting in front of the fireplace in their common room, elbows on his knees, an official-looking letter in his hands. And then it dawned Hermione.

"Your father's trial is over, isn't it?" she asked quietly, having come to her own conclusion.

He looked up at her but didn't say anything. At first glance, he seemed as unemotional as she was used to, but his clenched hands spoke of confusion and in his eyes lay shame. He turned back towards the dancing flames.

Standing still for a while, Hermione watched him silently and he didn't seem to mind. He didn't seem to mind anything, she realized. He was closing down on himself, pushing the world out as far as possible, returning to his cold and measured self, mirroring the icy world outside the thick castle walls.

Putting the teacher's Christmas present, that she was still holding, onto the table, Hermione approached him slowly and sank onto the couch right next to him, tugging her feet under herself. She gingerly plucked the letter from his hands and folded it up and put it on the coffee table before she faced him again. He didn't react to her closeness at all. Putting a hand on his shoulder, she tested the ground and when he didn't draw back, she hugged him quite awkwardly from the side. He didn't move for a moment and when he did, it was only slightly by turning towards her and leaning on her with growing weight.

* * *

Malfoy didn't show up at breakfast the next morning. Not many teachers were present either as most of them had celebrated with lots of punch until deep into the night. Hermione got her issue of the Daily Prophet and quickly found the article she was expecting, informing the reader about the conviction of Lucius Malfoy. She only skimmed the text and carefully folded the newspaper to take it with her to their common room. She wasn't sure Malfoy would want to read it at all, but she surmised that she could still burn it, if he didn't want it.

"A word, Miss Granger," Professor Snape appeared next to her out of nowhere when she had finished her breakfast and left the Great Hall. He didn't stop to give Hermione any explanation, expecting her to follow him. They headed to his office where he invited her to take a seat, locking and silencing the door behind them.

For a brief moment, a chill went down Hermione's spine at the thought of being locked inside the cold dungeon room with the terrifying Potions Master. Harry would have scolded her for being so careless. She swallowed the notion. He was a loyal Order member and Dumbledore trusted him so she could trust him as well.

"What we will discuss here will remain between the two of us, Miss Granger. Is that clear?" he said, taking a seat at his desk opposite to her.

Hermione nodded.

"I find myself in the position where I am no longer capable of assisting Draco with his problems without exposing both of us to danger," Professor Snape continued. "Still, he needs support, so he won't get himself into trouble. I need someone who can monitor him and report to me if there are any problems or suspicions of him defecting one of the two sides he is involved with." He really didn't beat around the bush.

"I hope you understand that his ties with the Dark Lord were never really broken, and he, as of now, plays both sides like I do myself," Professor Snape explained. "Don't look so surprised, Miss Granger. How could I spy for Dumbledore, if I didn't offer the Dark Lord something to trust me? It is, however, the fine line between useful and expendable information that I can deliver the Dark Lord. There are great consequences to my actions that Dumbledore and I are well aware of at any time. But that doesn't concern you so don't pry."

"Regarding Draco, my position in the Dark Lord's circles could be jeopardized, if I intervene in the boy's involvement any more. I fear that the Dark Lord plans to finally make use of his new tool, and that makes Hogwarts vulnerable."

Hermione swallowed.

"You need to keep an eye on Draco in my place and report anything suspicious to Dumbledore or myself."

It was a demand, not a question - that much was clear. Hermione shook her head. "No."

"I beg your pardon?" Professor Snape leaned forward.

"No, I can't- I _won't_ ," she corrected herself. "Don't you think he is monitored enough already?"

"And that concerns you?" he asked, raising a brow.

"He's suffering! His privacy is invaded and his every step is controlled already, and you want me to pry even deeper? He knows that he is watched! I've seen him twitch, when the teachers keep an eye on him in every class, in the corridors, even at meals! He gets nervous, he gets irritated, and one day I fear he might snap under the pressure this puts on him. I can't add to that. It would not help him, it would drive him away from anything good even further."

To Hermione's surprise, Professor Snape listened to her rant until she finished and didn't interrupt her once. After she had closed her mouth again - her lips pressed in a confident line - he scrutinised at her for a moment, before he slowly nodded and folded his hands in front of him.

"I realise that you have grown quite fond of my godson."

"I wouldn't call it that…" Hermione rectified stuttering. She scrunched up her face but didn't elaborate.

"If you think yourself capable of handling it, you can work to assist Draco yourself without us intervening," Professor Snape proposed slowly, while seemingly mulling the idea over in his head. "You must comprehend the importance of your success with this task. Your failure could have dire consequences, Miss Granger. I am sure you are capable of anything you decide to do, but do not underestimate this issue. Draco is in a position that can cause great harm to both sides of this war, and therefore the Dark Lord will do everything to get him onto his side."

"Sir, I'm not sure if I understand you correctly. You want me to offer him help?"

Professor Snape sneered at her patronisingly. "Be less obvious about it maybe, and try to be a bit more subtle than the average Gryffindor," he mocked. "You need to offer Draco an opportunity. He won't trust you, because he doesn't even trust _me_ anymore. But you could make sure that he has the option to confide in you. Give him power over you, and he will take it. He is a Slytherin after all. We might not trust in friends, but we do trust in power. He might open up if he knows to control you."

The way her Professor verbalised it, this approach made sense, but it also implanted a feeling of dread in her stomach. Giving Malfoy power over her - it sounded like a nightmare. He would exploit any opportunity he had to do her harm. Hermione rubbed her eyes. This wasn't about her, she reminded herself. This was about him, and if he needed her to be vulnerable to have even the slightest chance of defecting from Voldemort, her own wellbeing could be considered later.

"I will do my best, Professor."

"Good," Professor Snape nodded and dismissed her.

* * *

Spurred on by Harry's confession about his nearing demise, Hermione made a plan to prepare and research for the upcoming war. She didn't delude herself any longer that everything would sort out itself and that in the end everything would be good. If she had ever carried those hopes, Professor Snape's task had shattered all her optimism. Remembering how fiercely the 'adults' had tried to keep them from participating in Order Business, Hermione was sure that this had been the last straw for the Potions Master.

Efficiently using the days between the years, Hermione made herself comfortable in the library. She heaved heavy tomes from the shelves from all sections, going as far as asking Professor McGonagall for permission to use the Restricted Section. Of course the deputy Headmistress granted her favourite student the request without a second glance.

The books Hermione gathered around herself dealt with Magical History and the Dark Arts. Her Research reached as far as looking up the history of Wizarding Familiars and spells placed on living beings. Judging Slytherin's Locket and Gaunt's Ring - both already destroyed with Dumbledore's help - Voldemort had a predilection for meaningful objects to hold pieces of his soul so Hermione scoured her reading material for valuable artefacts belonging to famous wizards and witches. However, she was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of hereditary belongings handed down from generation to generation in the most established wizarding families.

Broadening her research, she looked for methods to break dark spells and destroy infested items. Thinking back, she remembered Harry telling her in detail how he had run the Basilisk tooth into Riddle's diary after he had stabbed the hideous beast with Gryffindor's sword. That thought made her hesitate. The sword definitely belonged to a great ancient wizard and therefore fit the criteria of Voldemort's Horcruxes. But Hermione doubted that Tom Riddle had been able to obtain the ancient sword. Dumbledore had explained to Harry that only a true Gryffindor was able to pull it out of the Sorting Hat. Voldemort was anything but that. But the idea floated around in her head and she began reading the Founder's history for similar artefacts.

They still needed to find three Horcruxes, Hermione counted. The Locket had been Slytherin's so she was confident that she could skip the history of the abandoned Founder. Instead, she focused her research on Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **She'd rather be bad-mouthed as a Mudblood than see him suffer.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Poor Draco :( How did you like the scene where Hermione attempts to comfort him?  
Did you expect Hermione to refuse Snape's request and following her conscience?**

 **The next chapter will shine a little more light on what happened in 6th year.  
I can promise some drama, some flirting and a lot of angst! :D**

 _Special thanks to my beta KoolStoryBro13 for accompanying me through all of this since the beginning :')_


	18. She thinks back

**A Saturday update again :) Lucky you!**

 **The summer is finally coming around so I hope you guys don't hang at home reading fan fiction all day because I definitely am :'D I really need to get outside a little more. I'm as pale as cream cheese :'D**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **They still needed to find three Horcruxes, Hermione counted. The Locket had been Slytherin's so she was confident that she could skip the history of the abandoned Founder. Instead, she focused her research on Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.**

* * *

It had been pure luck that they had discovered the Locket, Hermione recalled and hoped the search for the remaining Horcruxes could be dealt with in a more systematic way. It had happened in the summer holidays that she had spent with Ron and Harry at Grimmauld Place.

The tension among the three friends had been high since the end of sixth year. Unvoiced accusations hung in the air, which was heavy from moist summer storms. The only thing keeping Harry in the ancient Black residence was his unwillingness to return to his aunt and uncle. Still, Hermione couldn't bring herself to apologise for not trusting him with his suspicions of Malfoy being a Death Eater. In her opinion it was Professor Dumbledore's fault for not informing them until a rather violent encounter between Harry and Draco at the end of term. Hermione's stubbornness regarding the subject was only exceeded by Harry's sulking. So she tried to occupy her mind and kept herself busy, currently helping Molly Weasley in the kitchen.

"They stunned him last time he got in their way!" Hermione protested against Molly Weasley's most recent assignment to occupy the twins and keep them from their usual shenanigans. "How is that even remotely appropriate? You can't treat him like that just because he is a house-elf!"

Mrs Weasley had ordered Fred and George to find Kreacher's secret hiding spot for heirlooms that he had fished back out of the trash after they had been sorted by hand in case any were dangerous.

"Oh, but we don't do that because he a house-elf, Hermione," Fred corrected her.

"You innocent young lady," George added, patting her head fondly if a bit mockingly.

"We do it because he is an evil little beast."

"Surely your urge to hold your protective hand over house-elves and their rights –"

"-stops at treacherous screeching Kreacher-creatures," Fred completed George's sentence. "And by the way he makes an ideal test subject for our products."

"We didn't _really_ stun him, you know?" George confessed, grinning sheepishly.

"It was a very relevant experiment!"

"Just to test the waters with this new product that we didn't dare to try on ourselves first."

"You really should be proud of him for being an important test subject in our highly scientifically valuable studies. I think you can agree on it for the sake of science!" Fred elbowed her good-naturedly.

"The end justifies the means after all, doesn't it?"

"Get lost you two!" Hermione shooed them out of the kitchen impatiently. "Mrs Weasley, surely you see that they are not taking this task seriously. Throwing away the family heirlooms isn't easy for Kreacher. It's no wonder that he hates everyone, when we don't treat his valuables with respect."

"We can't let him keep cursed objects, Hermione. Do you want a repeat performance of what happened to Ron?" she frowned.

"I'm not saying that we let him keep the stuff. Just be a bit more patient with him and explain the situation to him."

"Well," Mrs Weasley huffed, clearly believing that Hermione valued the feelings of the old house-elf more than her children's safety. "If you think that then you should be the one to deliver that message. I'm sure you'll manage to deal with Kreacher just fine."

That definitely wasn't what Hermione had intended. Kreacher hated her guts on account of her blood status. She opened her mouth to suggest someone else, when Mrs Weasley interrupted her. "Hermione, I'm sorry, I really need to start peeling the potatoes. I've got a whole house to feed. Be good and let me do the cooking now."

Hermione was hustled out the door and found herself completely dumbstruck in the dark corridor in front of the kitchen.

She huffed. Of course this would be loaded on her. Why couldn't she keep her mouth shut for a second? But Hermione scolded herself. Poor Kreacher would have suffered the twins' wrath, if she hadn't spoken up on his behalf. She'd rather be bad-mouthed as a Mudblood than see him suffer.

"Let me guess, mum's making you do it now?"

Hermione craned her neck to look up the stairs where Fred stood, leaning against the railing at the first flight. She huffed. "Better than you tormenting him."

"He's awful, Hermione! He deserves a teeny teasing."

"A teeny teasing?!"

"Okay, a little more than teeny," he laughed. "But really, he's been – " Fred raised his fingers to signal quoting "' _losing'_ drawing pins in George's shoes. He got what he asked for. No one messes with us."

That was when Hermione realised that she was speaking with one twin alone for probably the first time since she knew them. Where was George? Casting a worried glance around, she expected a cruel joke from any direction. She really shouldn't be careless around the twins.

"Where's your brother?" she asked warily.

"You mean ickle Ronnikins? Looking to thank him properly for saving you from the evil book Kreacher fished back out of the trash? You must be quite smitten with your saviour now, right?" he joked. "Ah, but you already were head over heels for my lovely brother before that, how could I forget?"

"No, I mean George," Hermione ignored his insinuation. "Where's that other half of you? You only ever appear separated when you are up to something, admit it."

"Or when one of us is taking a dump. Honestly, Hermione, do you think I want to share _everything_ with my idiot twin?" he grinned, his eyes shining fondly while speaking about George. "But you're straying off topic here, we were discussing your infatuation with my other bumbling brother. I assume he's a rather boring lover of all the other brothers you could have bothered with. You should honestly rethink your choice."

Hermione glared at him. "Why do you care?"

He frowned, leaning forward to get a better look at her from his position above her. "Don't tell me that you're already over your little schoolgirl crush with poor Ronnikins. He was probably saving himself for you. Why else did he only go out with that Lavender girl? Must have been hard to stay away from all the birds in Gryffindor just to stay pure for you."

Hermione turned bright red. She never had such an intimate conversation with one of the twins, nor with anyone else ever!

"Gred!" George shouted from farther upstairs.

"Not now, Forge!" Fred shouted back. "I'm having a conversation with a pretty young lady here! I think she's the one! She's all over us Weasleys!"

"Care to share?!"

"Fuck off! I was first!"

"Ah, Hermione! Be a good girl and leave my idiot brother in one piece when he has finally confessed his undying love for your sexy arse!"

"Shut up, George!" Fred roared, turning quite red himself now.

"Would you mind keeping it down?" Arthur quipped from another part of the house and Hermione took that as a cue to leave in search for Kreacher. She had to find his recent heirloom hideout after all.

* * *

"Kreacher, where do you hide them?"

 _"_ _Worthless scum wandering these ancient halls, how could the great house of Black sink so low?"_ the old house-elf grumbled, ignoring her inquiry.

"Kreacher, those things are dangerous, they can harm people," Hermione tried to talk sense into him.

 _"_ _Killing Mudbloods and Bloodtraitors is what my Mistress would have approved of,"_ he nodded.

"Tell me where you kept them right now, Kreacher!" She started to lose her patience after following the old elf around the house, trying to get the needed information out of him. He had disapparated several times, leaving her to start looking for him again and again. Now, she had finally cornered him in the Drawing Room.

 _"_ _Little Mudblood gives Kreacher orders, who does she think she is? Stole a wand from a real wizard and thinks she is worthy to be served now."_

"I can hear you, you know? You are not being very polite." She was trying hard to remain calm and reasonable. In the beginning she had been confident that with a few nice words and careful questions she would find out where Kreacher hid his trinkets, but slowly she started to lose patience with him.

"You really think he'll tell you anything voluntarily?"

Hermione turned to find Harry standing in the doorway. He had his arms crossed in a defensive stance that he had adapted some weeks ago. He was always defensive these days. Against his friends and against the adults. He was defensive against the whole world, it seemed. Somehow, he had regressed from his grown attitude, he had taken on when Sirius had died, to a constant cynical defiance.

He had demanded of Dumbledore to include him in all Order business when Sirius had died, had insisted on participating in meetings and helping running errands whenever he hadn't been in school. Harry had grown, had matured and had started finding his place in life with a clear aim he could strive towards. The death of his godfather, he had promised to himself, wouldn't be for naught. And then the old Headmaster had failed him. Again. No trust was left in her Harry anymore and Hermione really couldn't blame him.

He didn't wait for her answer and turned to leave.

"Wait Harry! Can you please order him to show me the hiding place? We can't have him hoarding those heirlooms any longer. It's dangerous," she urged him. Harry was the only one that had at least some kind of command over the demented house-elf.

Harry sighed. "Kreacher!"

 _"_ _Kreacher's young Master calls him. Oh, how Kreacher wishes his old master back, even the dog was more worthy of being in charge in this house."_

Harry sneered down at the old house-elf and for a moment Hermione was afraid, that he might punish Kreacher for mentioning Sirius. "Show Hermione where you hide the heirlooms! All of them," he added in an afterthought. You had to be very accurate with orders. Otherwise, Kreacher chose to misunderstand them on purpose.

Kreacher wrung his hands, unable to defy a direct order, and scuffled ahead through the hall, muttering under his breath the whole way.

"Will you help me?" Hermione asked timidly. This was the first time Harry had spoken to her the whole week and a little hope had blossomed within her heart that he would open up again and finally trust her how he used to before. Their friendship had suffered greatly the last months due to his constant paranoia and Dumbledore's web of lies and secrets.

Harry nodded reluctantly and followed her out of the room and to the loose floorboard Kreacher showed them while pulling on his ears frantically.

Hermione carefully poked her lit wand into the hollow space underneath the wooden floor. "You know, he'll get what he deserves. I'm sure the Ministry won't let him off nicely," she tried to console Harry.

"I don't care what they do to Malfoy," Harry grumbled, kneeling beside her. Hermione understood. His anger wasn't directed against the boy that had antagonised them for years and then predictably joined the Death Eaters, it was directed against the mentor that had promised trust and sincerity and had betrayed Harry by lying to him and keeping him in the dark.

Hermione waved her wand over the little box that was nestled between the floorboards, checking for any spells placed on it. She was aware of Kreacher's piercing eyes fixed on her. Although she couldn't detect any curses, she halted Harry's hand, when he reached for the box and lifted it out of the hole magically instead to be safe.

 _"_ _Foul Mudbloods are not allowed to touch the precious heirlooms of the black family,"_ Kreacher grumbled under his breath.

"Why didn't you just let Fred and George take care of him? He is so frightened of their jokes by now that he does everything they say," Harry sighed. He glared at the old house-elf, who yanked at his ears distressed, when Hermione managed to open the magical lock with a quite advanced spell that she had learned from a book she had found in the Black's library.

Behind the book about locking charms and wards, another had been hidden, which had turned out to be cursed. Ron had ripped the wretched thing from her hands, when boiling bitumen had bubbled from between the pages. He had been burned severely, but had assured Hermione that he was all right as she hadn't come in contact with the substance thanks to his heroics. After Harry had snatched Kreacher down from the attic to question him about the cursed book, the old house-elf had admitted that he had placed it there, knowing that Hermione used to read in the books of his old masters, to punish her for touching the precious tomes.

"I'm sorry, Harry," Hermione whispered, unexpectedly finding the courage to speak aloud what she had been thinking for some time now.

"For what?" he asked. But she knew that he already understood what she had meant. Still, he wouldn't make this easy for her. The disappointment must have been too great to let it go easily.

"I'm sorry for not believing you, for not supporting you. Turned out you were right all along about Malfoy being one of them," she said, staring at the box full of tarnished silver jewellery and other trinkets.

"Would you be sorry if I had been wrong?" he asked, looking at her from the side.

"I – " she stopped. She didn't know. Probably not. Most likely not. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "I failed you, didn't I?" Sniffing softly, she wiped her moist eyes.

"Yeah," he answered. But there was understanding in his tone and he smiled at her tentatively. "Come on, let's throw this stuff away," he prompted her.

Hermione nodded. "We should check everything for curses first, but if you don't want it, there's no use in keeping it."

"Sirius wanted it gone. He hated everything in here. This place was like a second Azkaban to him. Only this time he didn't escape it alive."

Hermione nodded gravely and proceeded to magically lift the first item from the little box. Kreacher started to rock forwards on his heels, mumbling unintelligibly. Hermione checked the brooch for traces of dark magic, before letting it disappear in a magically enhanced pouch that she intended to get rid of personally as soon as they had cleared out the stack. She wouldn't give Kreacher the opportunity to hide the trinkets again.

Bit by bit, they individually checked the heirlooms and pocketed them. With every new item that disappeared in Hermione's pouch, Kreacher's mumbling got more frantic and he proceeded to curse Hermione with the foulest words she had ever heard.

She in turn apologised quietly to him with every trinket she pocketed.

"How can you still treat him so decently? He calls you awful names all the time," Harry frowned when Hermione let a hideous silver frame with a tinted photograph of three little girls disappear into her pouch.

"I feel sorry for him."

"Sorry?" he scoffed.

"You don't become this bitter over nothing, Harry," Hermione answered, trying to lift the last item from the box. When it didn't budge, she checked it for curses before taking it out by hand, as it appeared to be safe. Suddenly, Kreacher quieted. Uncertainly, she looked up at the old house-elf whose eyes were glued to the piece of jewellery, she held.

"I'm sorry, Kreacher. We have to throw out everything. It is better this way," she tried to comfort him.

Unexpectedly, Harry halted her hand, when she wanted to throw it to the rest of the items into her pouch.

"Do you feel that?"

"Feel what?"

"It's- I think it's _ALIVE_." He stared at the Locket in her hand.

It looked rather plain compared to the sparkling earrings and necklaces she had taken out of the box before. Kreacher started whimpering quietly.

Hermione nervously looked from the Locket to the house-elf and back to Harry. "Harry, are you alright?"

"Put that down, Hermione," he begged her. "It might be dangerous." He sounded panicked which prompted Hermione to let it drop back into the box immediately.

"Kreacher, tell us what this is!" Harry ordered. Hermione flinched when the old house-elf broke out in tears suddenly, violent sobs wracking his tiny body.

"No, no, Kreacher. Don't cry. Please just tell us what it is. Don't worry, we'll handle it with care if it is so important for you," she tired to comfort him.

 **"** _DESTROY IT!"_ the house-elf screeched, pushing her away with unexpected strength to grab the offending object. He tore at its chain and smashed it on the floorboards violently. _"KILL IT! KILL IT!"_ he screamed frantically all the while.

"Stop it!" Harry shouted, grabbing Kreacher's arm and wrenched the Locket from his grasp.

Trembling, the elf quieted and sunk to the ground.

"Kreacher, what is this?" Hermione asked gently.

The old house-elf shook like a leaf and suddenly the words started to pour out of him, interrupted only by loud sobs. He told them how Regulus Black – his old master – had ordered him to return to the cave with him where Voldemort had hidden the Locket with Kreacher's help before leaving him to die. Hermione whimpered when he told them about the cold hands dragging him beneath the surface when he had been desperate for some water and how he had returned to his master because he had been ordered to.

He told them about Regulus' horrid death and how he had exchanged the Lockets and left. Hermione's tears were flowing openly by then and she reached out to the miserable elf who had thrown himself at their feet.

 _"_ _Kreacher begs you, don't throw it away, master! It's what master Regulus died for. He told Kreacher to destroy it and Kreacher couldn't!"_

Harry was speechless.

"Kreacher, we want the same," Hermione told him, having immediately realised what it was that they were handling. "We want to destroy it as well. It is evil."

 _"_ _That's what young Miss will do?"_ Kreacher looked up, his dog-like face streaked with tears, but his eyes glinted hopefully. Hermione smiled at him, it was the first time the old house-elf had called her anything but a foul name.

"We will, right Harry?" she elbowed him and he nodded in response, taking off his glasses to rub at his eyes.

Kreacher suddenly reached forwards and grasped Hermione's hand. _"How can Kreacher ever show his gratitude for your kindness?"_ He proceeded to kiss her hand, moving Hermione to tears.

"Harry, we need to get Dumbledore."

"No," he growled immediately. "We can handle this on our own."

"Harry, it's dangerous! If this really is what Kreacher says it is, we need to be very careful," she urged him. "Please. Let me deal with Dumbledore. We won't let him just swipe it away and do everything behind our backs again. I won't put up with that and neither will you. I promise."

Harry still clutched the amulet, unrelenting.

"Harry, do you trust me?

He was silent and looked at her. It broke her heart that it took him so long to answer and the splinters of her heart must have shown in the tears clouding her eyes when she repeated her question whispering. "Do you trust me?"

Harry looked to the ground and nodded.

"Kreacher, find Dumbledore, tell him it's urgent and can't wait, don't let him brush you off," Harry ordered quietly.

With a crack the old house-elf disappeared and they were left to wait.

Hermione steeled herself for Professor Dumbledore's arrival. She hoped he would not try to solve this issue without them like he had done last year. Harry had spoken to the old Headmaster several times through the year about his suspicions of Malfoy and though Hermione had been rather sceptical about his accusations regarding Malfoy, she had thought Dumbledore's ignorance of the matter insulting on Harry's behalf.

In the end, his suspicions had proved right. Something had broken in the relationship between Dumbledore and Harry that day, when he had found out that the Headmaster had known all along. Hermione had lost a great deal of respect for the old man that day herself.

Moments later, Kreacher reappeared with another loud bang, bringing a scandalised looking Dumbledore along with him.

"What in Merlin's – what is the meaning of this, Harry?" he boomed, causing the teenagers who were still sitting on the ground beside the loose floorboard, to flinch.

Harry rose. "There is an important matter we need to discuss."

"So you tell your house-elf to use force to bring me to you? Just because you have the power to do something, doesn't mean you should make use of it, Harry. You still need to learn a lot about taking responsibility," Dumbledore scolded him.

Hermione stood beside Harry, glaring at the old Professor. "How do you expect Harry to put his faith in you, if you don't even trust his decision, especially when he decides to consult you?" she asked enraged. "You should have come immediately when you received the message, instead of dismissing Kreacher."

Dumbledore breathed deeply, pulling himself together while rising to his full height, exuding superiority. "Tell me, Miss Granger, what was so important that it couldn't wait until the end of Mr Malfoy's trial?" Hermione frowned, recognising the guilt trap Dumbledore planted.

She grabbed the Locket from Harry's hand and held it out towards him. Squinting his eyes through his half-moon glasses, Dumbledore reached a wrinkled hand out. A Ring with a small, broken stone embedded adorned his ring finger.

* * *

Dumbledore had relayed to them later that the Ring was another Horcrux, when Hermione had refused to let him take care of the Locket without their presence. The Sword of Gryffindor had proved to be a useful tool for the destruction of Voldemort's Horcruxes.

With this in mind, Hermione got immersed in her research. Combing through the records on Rowena Ravenclaw until she came across a myth that piqued her interest.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **Malfoy grabbed Hermione's hand, efficiently hindering her from walking away. Behind them the staff and students started cheering loudly when the gong for midnight introducing the New Year sounded. Hermione heard them clink glasses but was distracted by Malfoy pushing her back in the dark corner under the metallic steps. Suddenly, he was very close.**

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 **Uhhh! That teaser! Next chapter will be AMAZING, I promise :D**

 **How did you like Fred and George in this chapter? Isn't Fred cute? *.* I couldn't resist on writing him a little flirty.**

 **Does this chapter clear up somethings that are different from canon? Are there any more open questions?**

 **This was my first attempt at a flashback. I really despise flashbacks so I hope you are all proud of me that I wrote one anyway :D**

 **Thank you KSB for encouraging me to write it because I really like the result :)**


	19. She's Kissed

**Hey lovelies! :) I did some power writing the last few days because I was incredibly motivated by reaching not only 100 followers, but also 100 reviews! Wow and thank you all for your silent support and to my reviewers for your very open support.**

 **Don't feel intimidated by the number of reviews, I still respond to every single one of them and do a little dance around my flat that includes booty shaking and equally embarrassing moves :D**

 **I am now participating in the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition so if you're interested in more of my stories there will be little one-shots in the future :) But don't worry, I'll work hard to not neglect this story and I am still some chapters ahead of schedule!**

 **Sorry for this endless author's note :D Here's the chapter:**

 **:::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Dumbledore had relayed to them later that the Ring was another Horcrux, when Hermione had refused to let him take care of the Locket without their presence. The Sword of Gryffindor had proved to be a useful tool for the destruction of Voldemort's Horcruxes.** _(A/N: Yes, the Ring and the Locket are destroyed for those who were wondering)_

* * *

Though Hermione had initially planned to spend New Year by herself, continuing her research on the remains of Rowena Ravenclaw's legacy, she was dragged into supervising the little party held by the remaining inhabitants of Hogwarts. Actually, she was invited to join as a regular guest, but as her role as Head Girl commanded, she would have to make sure the few first to third years would be in bed by one. It promised to be a difficult task, judging the level of excitement the youngsters radiated.

After enjoying a four-course meal in the Great Hall at the teachers' table, the lot collectively climbed the stairs of the Astronomy Tower to wait for midnight to arrive. The house-elves had worked real magic for this occasion, producing the most delicious stuffed goose and everyone was bloated with the Plum Pudding that had followed. Now they struggled moving upwards the endless steps of the Astronomy Tower consequently sluggish.

The Head Students were trudging up the stairs behind the rest of the little party, having an eye out for three fifth years that were known for their practical jokes. To Hermione's great relief, Sadie Baldock had taken over responsibility for them when they had tried to stuff explosives into the Christmas goose earlier.

"Malfoy?" Hermione called the blond moving ahead of her.

"Huh?" He didn't slow down while she was already panting slightly. Since her common room had been relocated to the dungeons, she no longer had to walk up and down the thousand steps to Gryffindor Tower regularly and wasn't used to climbing long stairs anymore.

"Have you written your mother? About your dad?" she asked.

"Listen, Granger. I am not one of your little charity projects, so leave me the fuck alone," he growled in response.

"I only want to help you."

"Congratulations, I need no help," he deadpanned.

"Why are you making this so difficult, Malfoy? I'm the one extending the olive branch here. It's not easy for me either."

"I didn't ask you to! Whatever the heck you think you are achieving - leave it!"

"You are just being defensive because you are ashamed," Hermione said.

Abruptly, Malfoy turned around, effectively forcing her to stop. Hermione moved backwards by taking a step back down, but that only made him tower higher over her smaller frame. "Are you a mind healer now?" he scoffed. "Listen to yourself for a moment, Granger. You are being ridiculous."

"I don't know what your problem is, Malfoy. I'm only trying to be nice and offer my support."

"And it's not appreciated, so step. Back. Down," he emphasised and declared the conversation closed by continuing upwards at a brisk pace, leaving Hermione behind.

When she reached the top, Malfoy was already off to converse with Professor Snape. But Hermione didn't intend to let him off this easily. Whether or not Malfoy wanted her help, she had made a promise to herself and to Professor Snape to look out for him.

She decided to try again later, maybe by being a little less brash and 'Gryffindor' about it, as Professor Snape had voiced it. Hermione helped herself to some punch the house-elves had prepared and arranged on a small buffet with delicious finger food on top of the platform they used for stargazing in Astronomy.

Not really interested in starting a conversation with anyone, Hermione observed the students around her. Only about thirty people had stayed at Hogwarts, enjoying the cosiness of the warming charm Professor Flitwick had cast and chatting away with their friends. Not many of the Gryffindors had stayed and Hermione found herself at a loss for what to do. Her head was still spinning from all the new information she had gathered on wizarding history in her search for possible Horcruxes and she couldn't stop herself from going through the list she had made. One by one she had crossed them out and put them on the list again until she had still two parchments full of famous artefacts left. It was near impossible to narrow it down more. She had already limited it to the ones that hadn't been officially sold or displayed in the last sixty years. She simply couldn't imagine Voldemort putting a piece of his soul into anything that was easily accessible.

Isobel tried talking to Malfoy several times that evening Hermione noticed, but he eluded her at every opportunity. She felt pity for the girl, who seemed to genuinely like him. And in Hermione's opinion she really deserved better. Isobel was kind and funny. A little on the shy side, but she burst out the most hilarious comments when one least expected them.

To Hermione's great annoyance, Malfoy was willing to go to such lengths to evade Isobel, that he even started talking to _her_ out of his own volition. Despite the fact that it provided ample opportunity to work on gaining his trust, it annoyed her greatly to be an excuse for him to not have a long overdue talk with Isobel. Hermione hated being used for his childish stalling tactics.

When Malfoy casually started asking about her original plans for the holidays, Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Why did you decide to stay anyhow?" he asked, leaning against the railing and gazing down at the ink black lake. "Didn't you want to spend Christmas with your boyfriends?" He turned towards her grinning.

Hermione suppressed the urge to roll her eyes yet again, instead drawing up her shoulders to hug herself as she remembered her mother scolding her years ago for that same bad habit. One day, she had promised a younger and more innocent Hermione that her eyes would get stuck from all the rolling.

"For your record, neither Ron nor Harry is my boyfriend," she growled.

"Yeah, whatever." Malfoy shrugged. "What kept you away from them?"

"Professor McGonagall asked me to stay for organisational purposes."

"Organisational purposes?" he repeated.

Hermione didn't answer, plopping a bacon-wrapped fig from the small buffet into her mouth instead.

"What keeps you from your girlfriend?" she asked to distract him from questioning her further. Hermione knew that she was a terrible liar and she didn't care for telling him her true reasons to stay over the Holidays.

He grumbled something unintelligible under his breath.

"Malfoy, why don't you talk to Isobel instead of me?" Hermione asked annoyed. She had seen them dance around each other for _days_ now, she even had to send the girl away when she had come knocking at their common room.

"Not your business, Granger," he brushed her off.

"It is, if you try to evade her by talking to me," Hermione insisted, frowning. "I have no interest in this conversation so go and make up with her so we can go to ignoring each other again."

"Admit it, you are just frustrated that no one else here would waste their time on you."

"There are plenty of possibilities," Hermione made a wide gesture at the sparse gathering.

At least Sadie was an option to converse with. The younger girl had offered Hermione a small smile, when she had only raised an eyebrow at her friends' shenanigans at the feast before. The Slytherin Prefect had managed to keep them on a tight leash on her own.

"Maybe McLaggen will talk to me, if I bat my lashes at him nicely." Hermione smiled, remembering the rather awkward 'date' she had had with the cad.

Malfoy scoffed. "You think of yourself far too highly, Granger."

"At least I have some sense of self worth, other than your little girlfriends, replacing one another every two weeks," she riled.

"Jealous?"

Hermione snorted.

"So what else do you want? What is all that obvious prying about? Is Potter being paranoid again and put you onto me? Either you're trying to spy on me or you've got a crush on me."

"As if!" Hermione spluttered.

"So you're not here to spy." He grinned at her deep scowl. "Admit it Granger, you can't resist my devilish good looks more than any other shallow girl in Hogwarts."

Hermione noted that Isobel had managed to slip away from her forced conversation with Professor Trelawney about her miserable luck for the quickly approaching New Year. "The Death Eaters will come for your dear sister, if you keep chasing your desires, my girl!" Trelawney tried to convince her, but Isobel wasn't listening any longer. Instead, she made her way over to them, clearly with the intention to finally corner Malfoy.

Pushing away from the railing, Hermione planned to give her the opportunity to catch Malfoy on his own. She wouldn't stand in the way of him talking to the girl.

Malfoy grabbed Hermione's hand, efficiently hindering her from walking away. Instead, he pulled her along, down the iron stairs leading to the platform on top of the Astronomy Tower. Behind them, the staff and students started cheering loudly when the gong for midnight, introducing the New Year, sounded. Hermione heard them clink glasses but was distracted by Malfoy pushing her back in the dark corner under the metallic steps.

Suddenly, he was very close. Disturbed by his intrusion into her personal space, she opened her mouth to protest and tried to push him off. But before Hermione was able to even utter a word, his lips were on hers and his hands were holding her face in a feather light embrace. Shocked into stasis, Hermione didn't oppose.

His fingers were soothingly cool on her burning cheeks, leaving a trail of goose bumps, as they moved to cradle her neck. Her lips parted out of their own volition and fell into sync with his.

Unable to resist his swiftly deepening kiss, she leaned into him. No thought managed to form in the race of sensations that flooded her brain.

He was disturbingly sweet and Hermione should have known then, because Malfoy was _never_ sweet. He wasn't nice and he wasn't considerate. He was cunning and deceitful.

"You've just become one of those girls you always condemn me for, haven't you, Granger?" he whispered against her lips before pulling back. He smiled at her! Just smiled, no sneer, no insult, just childish victory and superiority shining in his eyes. That bastard!

The only thing Hermione knew in that moment was what her mum always had her memorise: _Hit and run_. She did by kicking his shin forcefully and turned, leaving as dignified as possible. He groaned but then she heard him laugh behind her. In that moment she wished for Ron's physique so she could have given him a real sidewinder.

That was when she spotted Isobel. She was standing behind the cold metal stairway, staring at Hermione with big eyes. In her peripherals Hermione saw Hagrid's magical firework explode in thousand vivid colours, painting the sky in gay lights. Embarrassedly ducking her head, Hermione hurried past the girl.

* * *

Despite staying up till late at night - or rather early in the morning - Hermione got up with the rising sun the next day. The events of the New Year's Celebration left her restless. She was certain that Malfoy had used her to get rid of Isobel. The hurt look on the girl's face had told Hermione as much.

After visiting the kitchens for a quick snack and a heartfelt thanks for the delicious cooking the day prior, she settled in the common room, picking up her book that she had borrowed from the library for her research.

It was already close to lunchtime when Malfoy made an appearance, looking quite hung-over as he squinted his eyes against the light radiating through the unusually clear lake behind the windows. It gave Hermione quite a bit of satisfaction that he seemed to have a severe headache.

"Mind telling me what yesterday was about? What the heck was that for?!" she confronted him head on.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist, Granger," he brushed her off. "I was bored. No witch in this castle is anywhere near interesting to me and you are fun to rile up."

"I hate you, Draco Malfoy," she growled. "Stay away from me!"

"Oh, but secretly you love me," he gloated, running his fingers through his still messy hair. "What would you do without me? No one to vex you, no one to drive you to prove yourself at every turn. You'd be nobody without me, admit it, Granger. I am your world."

"You are so full of yourself – unbelievable!" She couldn't bear staying in a room with him any longer so she left to find a quiet place to continue reading.

* * *

Hermione contemplated reporting Malfoy. He had physically assaulted her, had touched her – she didn't dare to think about the kiss itself - against her will! That hadn't been an innocent kiss out of hidden affection or obtuse curiosity. It had been an act of violence against her person, to humiliate her and dominate her in a way so disturbing that it made her feel used and dirty.

Had she not felt pity for him and felt such a strong obligation towards Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape, she would have probably run straight to Dumbledore to get Malfoy expelled. But the way things were, she felt pressured to ignore the incident and continue striving to fulfil her task and she didn't like it one bit.

She was above his petty games. Malfoy had been the one to initiate the kiss anyway so she had nothing to be ashamed of. She had been caught by surprise and her brain had not reacted fast enough to stop her body from a logical response. Well, the logical response to Malfoy kissing her would be hexing him into yesteryear quite literally, but Hermione didn't dwell on the appropriate response her body should have had.

Internally, her pride raged against her more rational side, telling her to use this opportunity in the most shameful way. Malfoy wanted her to act inferior and confused and she would give him that. If she pretended to have fallen for him and play to be hurt by his behaviour, he'd think that he wielded power over her. And soon she'd have him eating out of her hand.

Hermione shuddered when she realised that this was exactly what Professor Snape had implied, when he advised her to make herself vulnerable, to let Malfoy use her to get him to trust her. But surely this couldn't be what Professor Snape had meant. This was just utterly cruel. What was she supposed to do? Run after Malfoy like a lovesick fool?

Malfoy certainly used others' emotions against them when it suited him. He was a Slytherin after all. She just wasn't sure if she could really pull it off. It would need to be very believable or Malfoy would see right through her and then she wouldn't stand a chance at all.

Maybe, she thought, this wasn't such a good idea.

* * *

It seemed Malfoy had been quite successful with getting rid of Isobel. She glared at Hermione every time they passed each other in the corridors or sat at meals. As if it was _her_ fault that he was such a douchebag and couldn't break up with his girlfriend properly! But despite the anger that was obviously boiling within Isobel, she didn't come to their common room anymore and seemed to have finally gotten over the arsehole. She didn't spare him a glance since that evening.

* * *

 **Next chapter:**

 **"What's wrong with Granger?" Nott mock-whispered loudly enough for her to understand every word.**

 **"Oh, she's got a crush on me," Malfoy shrugged so casually that she turned bright red.**

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 **You don't know how excited I am about this chapter, but also terrified of the reactions :'D**

 **What do you think about the kiss? What are Draco's intentions?**

 _Beta'd by KoolStoryBro13 like the rest of this story :)_


	20. They're Back

**Welcome back :) Here's another rather long chapter, don't get used to it :D**

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 **Previously:**

 **It seemed Malfoy had been quite successful with getting rid of Isobel. She glared at Hermione every time they passed each other in the corridors or sat at meals. As if it was _her_ fault that he was such a douchebag and couldn't break up with his girlfriend properly!**

* * *

Hermione was greeted by a bear hug from Ron. She had waited for the students finally returning to the castle anxiously the whole morning. Standing on her toes in the Entrance Hall, she had waved for her friends with vigour and squealed with delight when Ron left his heavy luggage behind to run to her. A great tension had build over the last days and weighted down on her but now it finally let up, when she saw her friends again.

"You wouldn't believe it, Hermione! My sister - MY SISTER - apologised!" Ron shouted excited and so loudly that Hermione winced and several heads turned to them. "Came crawling back to Harry herself! Can you believe it?" he threw his hands up in disbelief, as if he hadn't witnessed it first hand.

Hermione smiled knowingly and felt a bit proud of Ginny.

"George was asking for you, 'Mione," Ron informed her.

"George?"

"That was Fred asking, you nit!" Ginny shouted, dragging a ruffled looking Harry with her through the crowds to greet Hermione. The two seemed to have wasted no time after rekindling and looked as in love as one could be.

"Yeah? I wasn't sure," Ron admitted, grinning sheepishly.

"You can't differentiate between your own brothers?" Hermione laughed.

"They are bloody confusing!" he defended himself. "As if you knew how to tell one from the other..."

"Fred is the one who likes to rhyme," Hermione remarked, at which Ron turned bright red.

"Right," he forced. "Then it definitely was Fred asking about you."

"Why would Fred ask about you anyways?" Harry chipped in.

Hermione shrugged her shoulders, but secretly she reckoned that the Weasley Twin had a little crush on her. She smiled. She never had been happier about being reunited with her friends again.

* * *

Early the next morning, they met at the breakfast table. Hermione was ready for their first lesson this year, while Ron still complained that he hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep, asking everyone passing about the shade of his eye circles.

"I think they have a bluish tint, to be honest," Neville remarked. "My Gran had this new wig for New Year that had the same colour."

"No way, they are nearly black! I think they can be best compared to Professor Snape's robes," Lavender joked.

"If you ask me, they are about as dark as the instant darkness powder I got from your brothers' store with my Christmas money," Colin told Ron.

"Hey, Ron!" Harry got his attention. "Remember Hermione's dress on the Yule Ball in fourth year? _That_ was the exact same shade as your eye bags."

Seamus clicked his tongue disapproving. "Don't exaggerate guys, they are the shade of Malfoy's ego, judging how concerned Weasley is about them tarnishing his appearance."

Hermione stifled her giggle with a hand to keep from snorting out her tea.

Ginny arrived at the breakfast table that moment and greeted Harry with a light kiss on the top of his head. She seemed pensive but happy. Hermione sobered up, wondering if Harry had told her about his doom already.

That moment the morning post arrived and a pungent delivery owl demanded to be paid. Hermione dropped a few Knut into the little pouch on her leg and received the Daily Prophet. She unfolded it, shaking her head at the sensational headlines. The paper had started trying to overtrump it's own coverage. There was so much happening on a daily basis now, that a simple Death Eater attack didn't catch anyone's attention any longer.

"What chaos," she mumbled, reading about the newest resignations of high positioned Ministry workers.

"There's been a lot happening within the Ministry lately," Ron agreed. "Dad and Percy hadn't even been able to come home on Christmas for more than two hours. At first they weren't allowed to come at all. Mum was quite mad at them but even more so at their boss. She flooed right into his office to give that man a piece of her mind. I don't know what she told him, but when she returned with Dad and Percy in tow, they were both quite pale and meek."

"Percy is working with Arthur now?" Hermione questioned. Apparently the most studious and ambitious Weasley brother had found his way back to his family.

"Kind of. He's been working on the Malfoy case in the Auror Department since he took on the man on his own. Dad has been cooperating with their department with repeated cases of Dark Artefacts and misuse of Muggle Artefacts."

"You probably read about them in the Prophet, 'Mione," Ginny interjected. "There've been some illegal experiments on abducted Muggles. The Ministry raided several anonymously rented flats and even Crabbe's Estate as a consequence. Dad and Percy have their work cut out right now."

Hermione shuddered, thinking about what kind of experiments that could have been.

* * *

The news continued to worry Hermione more with every passing day. When she arrived in the Great Hall for breakfast mid January, she was greeted with the sight of her friends already brooding over the most recent issue of the Daily Prophet, their frowns deeper than Hermione would have liked them to be.

She took a peak over Ginny's shoulder. The article that kept the Hogwarts students from enjoying their breakfast was printed all over the front page, followed up by an investigative story on pages six to eight.

After a moment of craning her neck, Hermione got impatient when Ginny didn't turn the page, having reached the bottom already. Noticing Hermione's irritated shuffling behind her, the redhead huffed and thrust the paper into Hermione's hand, reaching instead for the Witch Weekly still lying untouched between the pages of the Prophet.

Hermione grinned guiltily as she took the paper.

 _Ministry funds Death Eater armament_ _._

She shook her head at the vast simplification of what the article was actually about.

 _Pius Thicknesse_ _–_ _security adviser of Minister Cornelius Fudge – slated Ministry funds to purchase weaponry and dangerous potions. The goods were delivered to one of the raided flats, that were among the crime scenes in the illegal experiments on Muggles (as has been reported previously)._

Hermione wondered how they related the money spent on the goods purchased and their delivery. Surely, Thicknesse wouldn't have been so dense to transfer the money via Gringotts. Even if he had – the Goblins were awfully secretive and didn't care about the legality of anyone's transactions.

 _Details of the referred transfer are still unclear according to the Ministry's spokesperson, but top legislators promise_ _prioritised investigation on the matter. Fudge claims to not have been fully informed about the purpose of the loan he allowed Thicknesse personally._

 _The link between the borrowed money and the delivered goods was disclosed to the Daily Prophet by an anonymous source. It contains exclusive insider information, hinting at an involvement of Albert Runcorn as well, who supposedly enabled the loan in his position as the Ministry's Treasurer._

That brief and mostly facts-based introduction was followed up by several interviews and speculations so wild that Hermione had difficulties to continue reading without shaking her head at every word. Something about this whole affair was awfully fishy, but Hermione couldn't pinpoint that feeling.

"Luna, I thought the next Quibbler isn't due until next week?" Lavender asked the Ravenclaw passing them that moment.

"It's a special issue," Luna smiled, playing with her necklace that was made from buttons of all different forms and sizes. "Daddy said that with the corruption scandal the Daily Prophet will leave many events unreported, so he wanted to make sure that everything happening besides the scandal still gets to make it to the public."

"Can I borrow it?" Hermione asked, curious about what else there was to report beside the scandal.

"Of course!" Luna's eyes shone proudly at Hermione's interest in her father's tabloid.

Hermione felt a bit guilty as she usually scoffed at the tabloid despite knowing how important it was for Luna. It simply didn't fulfil the standards she required of a source of political news. The Prophet wasn't the best option either, Hermione conceded, but there were alarmingly few alternative sources for the daily news. Muggles had recognised the need for several independent dailies as well as weeklies long ago and offered a broad range of general as well as specialised papers and magazines. In the wizarding world, however, there really wasn't much to choose from.

Urgently, she scoured the Quibbler for further news, skipping on bizarre columns about microscopic lice settling down in nose hair, causing their host to sneeze uncontrollably. She got caught on an interview, featuring a picture of an elderly woman, holding an even older looking cat on her arm.

 _'_ _Old Whiskers came to me, when he was feeling lonely. I was feeding him for most of the time already so it was no chore taking him in,'_ it was subbed.

What had actually stopped Hermione from skipping the article was the mentioning of Bathilda Bagshot, of whom Hermione was a great admirer, heaving read some of her work already. She was hoping for a new book being released but was disappointed to find that the old historian had simply taken an unexpected vacation.

Hermione skimmed the interview.

 _'_ _Didn't even say goodbye, her house is a mess. She only took some personal belongings'_ , the women – a supposed close friend of Mrs Bagshot – relayed. _'She didn't say goodbye, but that is not unusual for her when finding a new project to work on. I only think that she is getting a bit too old to travel all that much. But Bathilda was never one to retire. That woman will be writing until the day she dies.'_

Maybe she was on one of her famous trips around the world to gather information for a new work, Hermione mused and continued flipping through the Quibbler.

When she turned to page 13, she finally found what she had actually been hoping for. A feature about the scandal filled the whole spread. Several Pureblood families and their ties to Thicknesse, as well as Runcorn had been scrutinised closely by the author who remained anonymous. Hermione wrinkled her nose at the non-existent source. Not very reliable, she thought. But the article provided detailed background information on the topic the Prophet hadn't even broached in order to make the story a big issue, without offering any real insights.

Hermione was a bit impressed how daring Lovegood was with this issue of his tabloid. The article didn't leave a good hair on some famous and influential families of the wizarding high society and linked some fishy money transfers to Death Eater activity.

* * *

After breakfast, Hermione jogged after Luna to return the Quibbler, catching the Ravenclaw just outside the Great Hall.

"Watch it, Lovegood," someone shouldered past Luna brutally and the small girl stumbled.

"Hey!" Hermione shouted and hurried to stand by Luna's side.

She put a reassuring hand on Hermione's arm and smiled lightly. Nothing seemed to faze her, really. Sometimes, Hermione felt envious about Luna's ever-present calm. She always seemed so unaffected, as if nothing could shake her whatever you threw her way. Then Hermione remembered with a pang that likely her detached personality was the result of the early death of her mother, paired with endless teasing and bullying over her first years at Hogwarts. If only Luna wouldn't always act so strangely and wouldn't believe in all the unicorn dung her father fabricated, maybe she would be more accepted among her peers. Hermione looked at Luna sadly.

"Usually people don't appreciate pity, but I don't mind," Luna suddenly said and smiled up at Hermione. "I know that you don't mean harm and that's good, isn't it?"

Hermione turned bright red, feeling caught in her private thoughts and a little guilty for being so judgemental.

"Why would they do that? Don't they have anything better to do?" she changed the topic quickly.

Luna shrugged. "They only project their shame and fear for their parents on me and daddy for the articles he published in the Quibbler," she replied gaily. "One would assume that they don't read daddy's magazine, judging their mocking of it every month it is published. But that only tells on them, doesn't it? How could they mock and fear something that they don't read?"

Hermione nodded, seeing no flaw in Luna's reasoning, secretly being impressed at how the girl managed to lever out the insults by their basis thrown at her.

"The article on the scandal was really good. But you don't happen to know where your father got that information?" Hermione asked.

"It's highly confidential, I don't even know who my father is in contact with."

"Oh," Hermione said a little disappointed.

"But in contrast to the Prophet my daddy knows exactly who his informants are and I know he pays them well. One time we didn't have any milk for a week because daddy paid them _too_ well," she laughed as if her father didn't risk them starving for his magazine. "He knows that no good informant does their job for free. There's always something in for them. I wonder what was in for the anonymous source the Prophet claimed."

Hermione nodded, that had been exactly what she was thinking.

"Oi, Loony! I'd watch my steps if my father spread lies like that."

"Shut it, Nott!" Hermione growled. " _You_ should watch your mouth, threatening someone in presence of the Head Girl."

"Oh, but it is merely a warning, Granger," he pledged innocence, raising his hands.

* * *

Making sure she brought her notice to use the restricted section with her, Hermione made her way to dinner. The permission had expired and she planned to ask Professor McGonagall for an extension. She looked up towards the Teacher's Table, looking out for her favourite teacher. Professor McGonagall, however, was currently engaged in a lively discussion with Professor Sprout, so Hermione decided to approach her after dinner.

Skimming her gaze over the teachers, Hermione's eyes halted on the beautifully carved chair in the middle. Dumbledore's seat was empty again.

"Harry, I was wondering where Dumbledore is lately. He hasn't made an appearance at meals for _days_ now."

Harry shrugged. "He's quite busy. I think this week he only came to Hogwarts for our meetings. He said that he's negotiating. Probably tries to get as much of the magical community on our side as possible. He even talks to the Goblins, he mentioned. Must be a piece of work," he frowned. "I can't picture them siding at all. I bet they'll wait how this war plays out and continue their business as long as it runs."

"There's no good history between Goblins and Wizards. They have already fought their share of wars with our kind. I think they'd be too selfish and aware of the threat to take sides," Hermione agreed.

After catching Professor McGonagall to sign her library slip, Hermione returned to her common room. Groaning, she discovered that it was occupied by Malfoy and Nott, sitting by the fireplace with glasses that certainly didn't contain Pumpkin Juice. She was still contemplating giving Nott detention for how he had threatened Luna. But in the end he had been sneaky enough about it to make excuses and Hermione decided to just not bother and keep a supportive eye on Luna instead. Nott wasn't the only Slytherin on whose bad side Lovegood had placed himself and his daughter, after all.

Trying to ignore the two Slytherins occupying her space, Hermione went over to the table and unpacked her homework. She took her time about it and did her hardest to avoid eye contact with the two chatting Slytherins across from her.

"Man, I wish you'd finally throw Hanley off the team, Draco. He's a real pain in the ass. He constantly pesters me about my position. There is no way I'm going to sit on the sub's bench just to give him a shot."

"Poor bloke just wants more attention from the girls, Theo."

Hermione couldn't refrain from shooting Malfoy a glare, when he winked at her not unsubtly.

"What's wrong with Granger?" Nott mock-whispered loud enough for her to understand every word.

"Oh, she's got a crush on me," Malfoy replied so casually that she turned bright red, clutching the back of the chair in front of her.

Nott spluttered laughing, his drink coming out of his nose unaesthetically. "She _what_?"

Hermione growled and pulled out the chair forcefully, it's legs scraping across the floor. If Malfoy thought he could mock her for something he had done, he was terribly mistaken.

"Listen, Malfoy. Just because you kissed me on New Years-"

"You _WHAT_?!" Nott cried out, tears of laughter leaking from his eyes now. Hermione rolled her eyes and plopped down, telling herself to just ignore them and not rise to the bait.

Malfoy shrugged again. "Took pity in her being there all alone without her friends. Also, Isobel was getting kind of clingy so I had to get her to back off. Was quite successful, as you can see," he sighed, pointing at angry red burn marks on his hands. It satisfied Hermione greatly that Isobel had cursed the git for dumping her like that. He deserved nothing less.

"MacDougal is a sucker for those hexes, fiery girl. Maybe I'll try her next," Nott grinned, not noticing the dark look Malfoy gave him for the last comment while wiping the spilled drink from his chin. "But honestly, there wasn't a better option to get her off your back than _that_?" he sneered at Hermione who mirrored his disgust.

"Could have just jumped off the tower instead," Malfoy said. "Can't have my pretty face be smashed, now can I?"

"If you don't watch your tongue, I'm going to smash that face personally!" Hermione seethed at being deemed the slightly better option than flinging himself from a tower.

"That's the spirit, Granger," Malfoy called out to her. Turning to Nott he added, "See what I mean? She's totally soppy on me."

Nott broke out into another fit of laughter and Malfoy grinned at her.

"Didn't know what sick fantasies you were nursing in that pretty little head, Granger," Nott teased.

Hermione huffed and decided to take her leave. This was entirely too childish for her.

* * *

The following days, Hermione dreaded opening the Prophet more every morning. The front pages were swamped with Death Eater rampages, mostly on Muggles and Muggleborns. Even Justin Finch-Fletchley's parents had to be relocated by the Order to guarantee their safety.

Deep down, Hermione felt an envious stab when Ron showed her the letter he had received from his father, relaying the difficulties this task brought to the Weasley clan. Bill had to come from Paris, where he had been on a mission for Gringotts, to erect protective wards for Mr and Mrs Finch-Fletchley's new home.

Hermione was astonished to what lengths the Order went to protect them. But on the other hand the Death Eaters were becoming more dangerous in these times. Maybe, had it been more obvious where this war was heading, someone might have thought to protect Hermione's parents as well. Even now, no one had even asked her about them.

She carefully cut out every article even remotely related to Death Eater activity and pocketed them to pin them on her bedroom wall next to the other articles she had collected over the last few weeks. She tried to figure out a pattern within the attacks, but had thus far been unsuccessful. They all seemed awfully irrelevant, looking at the greater picture.

She was just following a lead, noting down important facts, when there was a knock on her door. Sighing, Hermione called for him to enter, pushing her notes aside and turning around to face the door.

He leaned there, eyes trained on her wall, flicking about the wallpaper of articles and photographs.

"Merlin, how can you sleep with Greyback sneering down on you?" He wrinkled his nose, having spotted the cluster of werewolf attacks on the far right of the wall next to her bed.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Hermione questioned, not rising to his bait.

He didn't answer, eyes still roaming her collection of articles. "Are you playing little Auror Investigator now, Granger? Aren't you a bit old for child's play?" he mocked.

"Get to the point, Malfoy," she groaned impatiently.

He feigned hurt, "Don't you like my company, Granger?"

She huffed.

Grinning, he raised an eyebrow at her.

"I just wanted to let you know that…" He trailed off, having spotted a picture behind Hermione, his expression growing stony. Hermione didn't have to turn around to know which photo had caught his gaze.

"You want me to give you a picture of myself to put it right next to that?" he sneered at the image of Lucius Malfoy, looking down his nose at the photographer while looking as regal as ever beside the shackles on his wrists. The younger Malfoy's voice betrayed the anger he suppressed.

Hermione was torn; the need to soothe him was strong but she curbed it. "Then I wouldn't be able to sleep at all," she scoffed instead, turning her chin up.

He scrutinised her for a second. Then his anger dissipated and the grin returned, making Hermione falter a bit.

"Oh, who would have known that I could cause the Gryffindor Princess sleepless nights," he taunted with glee.

Hermione gaped at him. "You… utter… bastard!"

"No need to feel ashamed, Granger love!" he held his hands up. "I'm sure my personal fan club will let you join them. Valentine's is soon, maybe you want to send me some chocolate and a poem?"

"Shut up!" She tried to silence him, but he evaded her spell effortlessly.

"My, what a fiery woman," he continued laughing. Hermione halted. She hadn't seen him actually laugh for some time now. Of course he had never laughed with her rather than at her, but usually he joked with his friends between lessons. The last weeks however, he hadn't been very cheery. The few jabs at her had always just evoked small smirks and had been followed by a rather pensive and gloomy mood. His unexpected, open laugh was a real vision.

"What?" he stilled as well, looking at her sceptical and Hermione realised, she had been staring.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"You still owe me one, remember?"

She nodded. "I'm keeping my word."

"I need a signature." He waved the handful of papers he was holding.

Hermione sighed relieved. On the one hand, she had prepared herself for something uncomfortable and embarrassing, well knowing how Malfoy relished in humiliating her. On the other hand, she took his request as a success on her side. She had encouraged him to ask her for help with the Ministry's requirements and this meant that he was starting to open up towards her a little more. Professor Snape would be pleased about her progress in getting Draco to trust her.

She waved for the papers impatiently and signed them with her new Swan Quill quickly.

"Don't you want to check them?" he asked sceptically, obviously having expected her to scrutinise his report closely.

"Honestly, I can't be bothered. Whenever you really mess up, I'll probably already know anyways."

"What if I had been reading books about the Dark Arts and Blood Rituals and 'forgot' to mention them?" he challenged her.

She smiled, "I trust you to not fuck up the chance you got. I'm not going to report you for every little nick in your shining reputation, Malfoy." It was a promise, she tried to convey with a long look. He didn't quite look at her and actually seemed to be embarrassed. It was almost endearing.

"You know, if you forgot to write about any of your friends' or girlfriend's activities, I probably wouldn't notice."

He nodded reluctantly, taking the documents with him as he left.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"Honestly, Malfoy isn't really boyfriend material."**

 **"No?"**

 **Sadie scoffed. "He's a mess, not capable of having healthy relationships."**

 **::::::::::::**

 **How did you like the little flirty banter between Draco and Hermione?**

 **I'll be on a short vacation next week so I can't promise an update, but I'll try to do my best :)**


	21. She Explains

**Good news: this chapter will answer lots of questions and some loose ends will be tied together :)**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **She smiled, "I trust you to not fuck up the chance you got. I'm not going to report you for every little nick in your shining reputation, Malfoy." It was a promise, she tried to convey with a long look. He didn't quite look at her and actually seemed to be embarrassed. It was almost endearing.**

 **"You know, if you forgot to write about any of your friends' or girlfriend's activities, I probably wouldn't notice."**

* * *

The next day, Hermione left her office earlier than usual as there weren't any more students waiting for consultations. As she had agreed to hang out with Harry and Ron in the evening, she didn't bother to return to her dorm and headed straight for the Moving Stairs. On her way, she was stopped by Sadie Baldock to discuss the supervision of detentions. Hermione's gaze got caught on something else however.

Surprised, she craned her neck to get a better look. That truly was a turn of events she hadn't expected. Sure, she had encouraged him to give it a chance, to not put his social life to a complete halt just because of the Ministry's claimed reports. But she assumed that he was way too proud to even consider asking her for another chance. It felt… strange, seeing them together, holding hands in the halls. Hermione couldn't quite pin the feeling. She wasn't sure she liked it.

"Now that was unexpected, wasn't it?" Hermione tore her eyes from the pair to Sadie, who was handing her last week's report on detentions.

"What?"

"Malfoy and MacDougal. Who would have thought they'd give it another shot."

Hermione shrugged, trying hard to appeal casual. "They were already kind of together for some time before, I guess. She's a nice girl, maybe she's good for him."

"But why would she want him is what bugs me. Honestly, Malfoy isn't really boyfriend material."

"No?"

Sadie scoffed. "He's a mess, not capable of having healthy relationships. He'll drag her down the rabbit hole."

Sadie seemed to have a quite pessimistic perspective on him, Hermione realised. She just now started to understand how his mind seemed to work and the troubles he tried so hard to hide. And in her opinion, he had been quite successful with the last part until now. But apparently Slytherins were much better at reading each other.

* * *

"What is he planning? I don't see any relation between these attacks," Harry complained frustrated, chucking the Daily Prophet into the fire in Gryffindor Common Room. He plopped down onto the sofa tiredly, patting the place beside him to invite his friends to take a seat as well.

"I have been thinking about that as well," Hermione agreed, perching on the edge of the fluffy cushions beside him. "The attacks seem rather random at first glance."

"At first glance?" Harry perked up, a hopeful glint in his eyes. "Please tell me you've found out something."

"Why, I think I did." Hermione raised her brows.

"Of course you've researched the hell out of it," Ron grinned, but Hermione wasn't offended, having picked up the proud undertone his statement was carrying.

"Voldemort isn't as sneaky as he believes himself to be." She smirked. "He clearly tries to conceal his intentions. Of the many attacks and scandals, I am sure there are lots of false leads."

"Are you saying that the attack on us in Diagon Alley was nothing but a distraction?" Harry asked frowning.

"Definitely," Hermione agreed. "I've been collecting information on every event the last couple of months. To get an overview, the first thing I did was to classify the attacks."

She pulled out an unused parchment and her new swan quill to take note and visualise her findings. She had come to like the beautiful present of Narcissa Malfoy after she had made sure there were no harmful spells cast on it. Every time she used it, she imagined the face the genteel woman would make, if she knew who exactly the Head Girl was and therefore the recipient of her gift. It made her like the quill even more.

"There were random attacks, nothing out of the ordinary, dead Muggles, Dark Mark, Death Eater sighting." Hermione drew a circle, labelling it with 'attacks'. "The usual," she added grimly.

"Then there were the more interesting attacks: seemingly unrelated locations and victims, more concealed procedures and exceedingly complex magic involved," she continued, while adding a list of the premises next to the circle. "Those are the ones that are more important."

"Of course, there are the few cases Voldemort himself was supposedly on site," Hermione concluded, adding Voldemort to her list before looking up at her friends.

"That's what we should look at!" Ron added exited.

"No," Hermione shook her head.

"No?" Ron faltered.

"No," she confirmed. "They are red herrings to make us believe, that these events were the most important. We would assume, that Voldemort sees himself above taking part in distractions, but he is really clever and knows exactly how he is perceived."

"Furthermore, he made sure to use main sights for the attacks he participated in to make them stand out and seem more important. But when you have a look at it from afar, you see that he is acting like any terrorist. He chooses the biggest aims to do as much harm as possible without a clear agenda, following more general aims instead."

"A terrorist?" Ron asked quizzical.

"Muggle thing," Harry explained.

"You mean to tell me there are Muggle-Voldemorts running around?!" Ron gasped, seeming like he was having a hard time breathing properly.

"Highly dangerous Muggle-Voldemorts with lots of Muggle-Death-Eaters," Hermione confirmed. "They actually do far more damage with a single attack than Voldemort has caused since he walked the earth."

Ron looked panicked from Hermione to Harry and back. "Whom exactly are we fighting here?"

"Well, most foreign Muggle governments have become quite good at singling out terrorists by now. They can usually handle the worst."

"Maybe my father and Dumbledore should rethink their love for Muggles," Ron uttered worried.

"Terrorists often come from a background of neglect and oppression, so that would be the worst thing to do," Hermione frowned. "But we are straying off topic here, boys. Concentrate for a minute!" She watched amused as her friends straightened immediately and nodded like she was some war general briefing soldiers.

"As I already explained, we only have to look at the attacks involving advanced magic and excluding known involvement of Voldemort himself." She circled the magic part and crossed out Voldemort from her list. "What's left are four important events."

"Four?" Harry looked flummoxed.

"Not much, is it?" Hermione said. "I think he is being overly careful with concealing his steps, but that actually made it far easier. More data, more accurate conclusion," she explained.

"The first one happened at the same day as the corruption scandal was released."

Ron frowned. "I'm not sure what you found, but I am certain that there wasn't anything else in the Prophet that pointed to Voldemort. I've read it very carefully that day because dad wrote me about him suspecting corruption within the Ministry a week ago."

Hermione nodded. "That's exactly what Voldemort aimed for. He must have some sources within the news agencies to know when the scandal would be published. Maybe he even leaked the information on the corruption himself, sacrificing some of his followers in order to conceal his steps."

"It is rather clever, because the news are completely focused on the supposedly main event, while the actual thing happens in secret. As a consequence, what usually would have made it at least to the second page didn't even get a single article in the Prophet that day."

Ron looked impressed. "That's brilliant as well as completely insane."

"Well, we're talking about Voldemort here, aren't we?" Harry shrugged.

"But how do you know, that's how it went? It sounds a bit far fetched, actually." Ron doubted.

"It's actually a tactic that Muggle governments use quite frequently. I had to listen to my father, ranting about those sneaky politicians releasing new, unpopular decrees right after important sports events and world championships. Like the Romans used to say: **_panem et circenses_** – bread and games. It's a political tactic to distract the people."

"But you said yourself that there was no article in the Prophet about whatever you think happened that day," Ron pointed out.

"It wasn't. But the Quibbler wrote about it. It was an attack in Godric's Hollow. Bathilda Bagshot, the famous historian, was abducted and various items and notes from her home seem missing." Hermione drew a line from the main circle, proceeding to write down the name of the small wizarding community.

"Wait, that was no attack," Harry interjected. "I've read that article because I saw that it happened in Godric's Hollow. There was no Dark Mark and everything seemed like she just hurriedly left to travel and research for a new book."

"Also, it was featured in the _Quibbler_." Ron pulled a face, clearly expressing his not so high esteem in the tabloid.

"We know not to trust in the Prophet keeping us up to date on everything, Ron," Hermione scolded him. "The Quibbler has proven to be a good source of information in the past. Considering your doubts about it being an attack, Harry: Do you remember the cat mentioned in the article that strayed to the neighbour? Who would leave their pet behind unsupervised?"

He nodded thoughtfully. "If the Death Eaters took her then it would be one of the important cases we need to look at," Harry agreed.

"What's next?" Ron asked, excited about their clear reasoning.

"There was the raid on the Ministry's depots in Manchester," Hermione added the city to her chart. "I suppose something of importance was stolen. It will be near impossible to find out what Voldemort needed." Hermione shook her head sadly. "We have no access to the list of missing things."

"I'll write Percy about that," Ron offered. He's a pompous git, but he's accepted the need to bend the rules for a good cause, since Barty Crouch's deeds were leaked to the press.

"That would be great," Hermione beamed.

"What other important events have you marked?" Harry pressed on.

"I've had a look across the borders as well and found some pretty interesting articles about a prison break on the continent."

Harry and Ron looked at her expectantly, waiting for the interesting part of that information.

"Nobody escaped though, someone tried to get inside."

"Why would anybody try to get _inside_ a prison?" Ron shuddered, probably thinking of bedtime stories he had been told about Azkaban.

"Someone needed information only a prisoner could give, right?" Harry asked, looking down at Hermione's parchment frowning.

Hermione nodded. She exchanged a worried glance with Ron, when Harry dragged a hand down his face, leaning his elbows on his knees tiredly.

"I think I've dreamed about that. I thought it was a nightmare, but seems as if I witnessed Voldemort in action again."

"But who could be important enough to go to such lengths? It must have been a risky move," Ron questioned. "There's no place better guarded than prisons."

"The prison we are talking about is called Nurmengard," Hermione revealed, noting down the prison located in northern Europe. "I'm sure you've heard of it, Ron."

The redhead sucked in air sharply, but Harry was completely ignorant.

"Grindelwald," Ron supplied.

Hermione nodded. "Gellert Grindelwald, the Dark Lord before Voldemort, built this prison to lock away political opponents of his new regime. 'For the greater good' he wrote on the gates."

"Sounds disturbingly like Dumbledore," Harry remarked.

"That's because they knew each other," Hermione affirmed.

"Everyone knows that Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald," Ron shrugged unimpressed.

"That's where this get's interesting," Hermione remarked. "I was wondering why Voldemort would kidnap a senile historian, so I read every book about Bathilda Bagshot available in the library and discovered some interesting relations. She was the neighbour of the Dumbledores as well as the aunt of Gellert Grindelwald."

"You mean…" Harry trailed off.

"Dumbledore knew Grindelwald way before he defeated him," Hermione confirmed.

"But… why is this Grindelwald so important, when he is long gone?"

"Because he isn't. Well, he wasn't. He died a few weeks ago, shortly after the prison break into his own prison cell."

"What?!" Harry and Ron exclaimed unison.

"Voldemort had a chat with the former Dark Lord?" Harry swallowed hard. "That can't be good."

"There wasn't much information and no one was able to question Grindelwald anymore because he died soon afterwards. We can only guess what Voldemort wanted to find out." Hermione looked at Harry expectantly, but he shrugged his shoulders frustrated, indicating that he didn't remember any details from his dream.

"I've read that Grindelwald was famous for practicing the darkest of magic when he was only sixteen. He was also experimenting a great deal with Muggles, it isn't exactly light reading," Hermione pulled a face. "He replicated some twin studies of the Third Reich with magical components. It's awful enough to be locked away in the Restricted Section of the Library."

Harry shuddered and Hermione decided to spare Ron the knowledge of the horrid stories they were taught in Muggle school.

"Well, the last one was least obvious," Hermione finished her list, writing down Bedford Town Hall Massacre. "It was a terrorist attack in Bedford."

"Huh? I haven't read about that anywhere I think."

"No, I already guessed so. I'm still reading the Guardian from time to time and thought it was strange but didn't think on it until I started researching."

"The Town Hall was stormed by a group of Muggles wielding different weapons that all seemed strangely improvised. Not a single one carried a gun."

"A gun?"

"One of the most effective Muggle hand weapons. And it was later revealed that one of them even owned two guns and would have been able to carry them around. He was a police officer. But they were using, clubs, knifes, someone even a fork to kill anyone that stood in their way."

"They were all shot to eliminate the threat except for one. He is in a mental clinic now, but the police was unable to get him talking. The article was quite vague about his state of mind but he was described as unresponsive, like he is no longer there with only his body still alive."

"Do you think…" Harry trailed off, his eyes flicking unseeing through the room. "Do you mean Dementors did that?"

"I think this is something far worse than Dementors, Harry." Her nervous fingers grasped the necklace he had gifted her. "I haven't heard of cases where they could control someone's mind and body before taking their soul."

A collective shudder passed over the trio at that thought. Outside, the wind had picked up, beating against the windowpanes and whistling menacingly.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **Her throat tightened, when he drew his wand.  
"Malfoy." She tried to convey a warning, but it came out more like a whisper.  
"You know, it would be a lot easier to just get rid of you completely. Your long waking hours are quite bothersome when my master calls."**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Finally some revelations! Here we reached the point where this is turning completely AU. I hope you like my ideas and how everything comes together :) The story will turn a little darker from here on :O**

 **How did you like Hermione's reasoning? Like my beat phrased it: she's a super sleuth :D**

 _Thank you KSB for beta reading and offering so many ideas!_


	22. She Cares

**My lovelies, I'm so sorry you had to wait longer as usual for this chapter! I know I promised to keep updating regularly despite the QLFC, but the competition is demanding more of my time than I anticipated. I'm still working a lot on this story, and I will try to upload every two weeks at least!**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"Do you think…" Harry trailed off, his eyes flicking unseeing through the room. "Do you mean Dementors did that?"**

 **"I think this is something far worse than Dementors, Harry." Her nervous fingers grasped the necklace he had gifted her. "I haven't heard of cases where they could control someone's mind and body before taking their soul."**

* * *

"Who sent you that?" Malfoy asked, eying the artfully packaged box of chocolate Hermione unwrapped in their common room on 14th of February.

There was no way Hermione would try one, knowing the sender had a knack for tampering with sweets. It could either be regular chocolate or it could be mixed with some kind of potion turning her nose to slits and her head bald. She really didn't want to risk being the test subject for the twins' newest product line, making her look like a villain. The idea was brilliant – transforming their customers into a ridiculous version of Voldemort for a quick laugh however was more than risky in Hermione's opinion.

"I guess I have an admirer." She chuckled at the awful poem Fred had sent with the package. "Did you get anything for Valentines'?" she asked out of courtesy.

"Loads of stuff," he replied quickly. "Just didn't bother to carry them into our common room to litter it with all the packaging."

"I hope Isobel won't get jealous." She smiled, trying to keep the conversation light. It was one of the rare interactions between them that wasn't hostile.

He didn't answer.

Something seemed wrong. He was unusually tense, Hermione noticed. She didn't dare to ask however.

* * *

Hermione was still mulling over their conversation the next day when she plopped down next to Harry in the Transfiguration classroom. "We need to think about what we'll do next, Harry. We can't just sit around and wait for things to blow up. Did Dumbledore give you any new information?" she asked, focusing on the most important matters at hand. "I'm tired of searching for every little clue on my own. We need something to work with."

"Yeah, I know. The old man isn't in Hogwarts very often lately. He cancelled most of our meetings as well. Said he'd give me some time to come to terms with… you know." Harry fell silent, staring at his hands pensively. "I don't know what's there to come to terms with. I know what I need to do. What I _want_ to do. I think I already came to terms with that eventuality when I first faced him. I mean I didn't really expect to get out of there alive when I faced Quirrell in first year… Now I just want to continue. I want to do something, but Dumbledore won't let me."

Hermione nodded, squeezing his hand supportively. "Let's meet and discuss our next step tonight."

"Guys, you're missing a great show!" Ron joined them that moment.

"What?" Hermione asked as he dragged her out of the classroom with Harry following in tow. A small crowd had gathered outside the door, keeping a safe distance from the commotion they were watching.

"Why the fuck did you hex me, woman?!"

"Keep away from me, Malfoy!"

"Witch, what's wrong?"

"What's wrong? You are impossible to love, that's what's wrong!" Isobel cried.

"Then pray tell, what were you doing with me these last few weeks?" Malfoy seethed.

"Honestly, I don't know." Her tone had turned cold. "I must have been out of my mind. Really, who would want to be with someone with a murderer for a father?" The crowd of students sucked in a collective breath.

Professor McGonagall arrived behind them in that moment and shot Malfoy a pitying look before she shushed her students and shooed them inside the classroom. Isobel was surrounded by her friends who were offering support and shielding her from her boyfriend – or rather, ex-boyfriend. Malfoy growled under his breath as he left everyone behind and stalked off down the corridor.

Hermione was only stopped from running after him to see if he was alright by Ron who was holding the classroom door for her in an unusually gentlemanly gesture.

"Can you believe I actually feel sorry for him?" he whispered, following her to her place next to Harry. "I mean, it's not even his fault."

"What's not his fault?" Hermione had the feeling that she had missed something important in the whole picture.

"You don't know?"

Hermione pulled a face at his stupid question. "Would I be asking otherwise?"

"Her sister was assaulted by Death Eaters last night because she was working on the case on Lucius Malfoy. That's why she broke up with him, I guess."

"Oh."

" _Oh_? She ripped out his heart in front of the whole class. She really twisted the knife. It was painful to even watch it!"

"Mr Weasley, if you'd rather gossip than partake in my lecture, you are free to leave. You won't need to come back for the rest of the school year, either." Professor McGonagall towered over them and Hermione turned a brilliant shade of red, quickly taking out her homework and course book.

Malfoy didn't return for the rest of the lesson. Professor McGonagall acted as if she didn't notice, which was as surprising for Hermione as it was worrying. She didn't think their teacher didn't care, on the contrary Professor McGonagall seemed to care too much. Was Malfoy so close to joining Voldemort completely that he was now being handled with kid gloves to prevent that?

"Guys, I should probably see how our dear Head Boy is doing," Hermione excused herself from her friends after the lesson. "I need to make sure he won't skip our meeting later."

"Not like _that_ would be a great loss," Ron joked.

She rolled her eyes, but smiled. "I can't do all the work alone, Ron."

"We'll see you later," Harry said, nodding at her.

* * *

She found him in their common room working on his essay for History of Magic. He looked up briefly when she entered. He seemed eerily collected and not at all affected by the recent dramatic break-up.

"Malfoy, I'm – I just wanted to say I'm sorry about Isobel."

He scoffed. "Good riddance. No need to bleed your heart out over that, Granger," he replied nonchalantly.

She hovered at the entrance, unsure of what to make with that reply.

"Don't tell me you came to bring me McG's detention notice?"

She shook her head no, leaning back against the artfully carved frame of the mirror entrance and hid her hands behind her back. Somehow, this was extremely uncomfortable. She didn't know exactly why she had gone after him in the first place. He didn't seem to need any reassurance or reminder to join their meeting.

He noted her self-conscious posture with a curious glance. His attention made her even more unsure of herself and she nervously fiddled with her sleeves.

"Why don't we prepare the rounds schedule now?" she asked to fill the silence. She actually had planned to go to the library first, but she just blurted out the first thing that came to her mind at that moment.

He shrugged. "Sure."

Relieved that she had found a reason to be there, she took a seat next to Malfoy and watched him draw a quick outline for a schedule on an empty piece of parchment.

"I don't think it's your fault by the way. Who they attack and all that. It's not like _you_ did it."

Malfoy looked up. "Are you sure, Granger?" She looked at him puzzled. "I know exactly when you return from your nightly walks so I can slip out of the castle unnoticed, you know." He grinned maniacally, making her shudder.

"Little Granger afraid of the big bad Death Eater?" He leaned in threateningly.

"Stop that," she said, her voice trembling more noticeably than she would have liked.

Unconsciously, she reached for her wand in her robe pocket but was stopped when his hand closed on hers, squeezing her fingers together painfully.

Her throat tightened as she watched him draw his own wand.

"Malfoy." She tried to convey a warning, but it came out more like a whisper.

"You know, it would be a lot easier to just get rid of you completely. Your long waking hours are quite bothersome when my master calls."

Hermione shook her head, convinced that he was lying and just toying with her mind. But when she found herself unable to move, she couldn't help letting a few tears escape. Desperately, she fought against his silently cast binding spell that glued her to the chair.

"Don't cry, little witch." He wiped the tears off her cheeks, which were quickly replaced by more streaming down her face against her will. "I'm going to make it quick and painless," he whispered, his hand moving down her neck.

"Not everyone would be so kind." He leered at her. "Greyback likes to be especially cruel with pretty girls." His fingers were ice cold when they closed around her throat as if he wanted to choke her.

"Cat got your tongue, Granger? Do you really think I'm all that innocent now?" He chuckled, releasing her from the bind.

She stared at him for several seconds, unable to process his outrageous behaviour. He was actually laughing at her!

Angrily, she wiped the tears off her face. "Fuck you, Malfoy. Don't fucking touch me!"

He laughed cruelly as she fled the room.

* * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione were huddled together in the Gryffindor common room – a _Muffliato_ buzzing around them to keep their conversation private. They had intended to meet and brainstorm how to proceed from there with all the information she had gathered.

Hermione didn't dare to tell them about the situation with Malfoy. It was embarrassing how she could have been fooled so easily. Being unable to fight against him or move at all had frightened her senseless.

"You know, I thought a lot about possible locations for Horcruxes and I tried to come up with a place where I would keep something precious," Harry said, addressing the current issue at hand."The problem is that I don't really own anything that I don't carry with myself at all times. My father's cloak and the Marauders' Map are in my trunk whenever I don't use them and I keep my wand in my pocket."

Hermione and Ron were as clueless as Harry. Their little brainstorm session wasn't as successful as they had hoped, and instead of avidly discussion possible locations, they silently whacked their brains for ideas.

"Harry," Ron suddenly said. "What is the most important place in the world for you?"

"Well, I love staying at the Burrow… But surely Voldemort didn't hide it there, Ron," he joked.

"You once said Hogwarts is your home," Hermione remembered.

"Yeah… It's the first place where I actually felt like I belonged," Harry nodded, fingering his wand thoughtfully.

"Then that's it," Ron proclaimed.

"You mean he hid a Horcrux here at Hogwarts? In plain sight, just under Dumbledore's nose?" Hermione eyed him critically.

"Just think about it: Harry and Voldemort are similar in so many aspects."

"Gee, thanks mate, where's my club of loyal mass murderers again?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean Harry. Speaking parseltongue, the Prophecy – don't deny it. And there's more. You both grew up without parents and you both hated your home in the Muggle world. He must have felt just like you when he came to Hogwarts for the first time."

"You're right, Ron," Harry said surprised. "That really makes sense."

Hermione shot Ron an impressed look for his unexpectedly clear deduction and reasoning and was even more impressed when he waved it off instead of gloating and basking in the praise like he used to at every opportunity.

"That means we actually have a chance to find it," she concluded, elated. "We just have to find out where in Hogwarts you can hide something like that without anybody noticing!"

They fell silent again, each going through their mental map of the castle, getting lost in the labyrinth of vast halls of their mind, mirroring the halls of Hogwarts.

* * *

With the nearing Quidditch match against Gryffindor, Malfoy seemed to be normal again. Hermione decided to attribute his aggressiveness to the recent break-up. He hadn't set a foot out of his room the day afterwards, confirming her suspicions that he hadn't been as unaffected as he had pretended. But now he strutted down the stairs to their common room as if he had inherited the world.

At breakfast, he had a hard time keeping his teammates in line. They were high on testosterone, waiting to beat their opponents.

"Robins!" Hanley shouted after a young Gryffindor, leaving the Hall with her teammate Jimmy Peakes. "Are you going to hide from the Bludgers under the stands again?" He laughed nastily as his friends clapped him on the back. "Next time you get a panic attack, feel free to hand the Quaffle over to us before we have to kick you off your broom."

Demelza Robins, one of Harry's Chasers, glared back, but her lower lip was trembling visibly. Her last match had been a shameful affair, and she had begged Harry for another chance in today's game, but right now her courage seemed to dissipate.

"Malfoy, do something about him or I'll ban him from Quidditch altogether," Hermione hissed at him. She had already had the pleasure of admonishing Niles Hanley several times and – to her great frustration – the insolent brat didn't take her seriously even with several detentions issued and House Points docked. He was Malfoy's reserve Keeper so he wasn't her obligation anyhow.

Malfoy, not taking no for an answer, took Hanley by the scruff of his neck unceremoniously and steered him out of the Hall.

"Don't worry, Demelza," Hermione said, comforting the younger girl. "He doesn't even get to play I heard. He'll sit on the sub's bench the whole match while you'll be out there scoring goals."

"She's right, Dem," Jimmy encouraged her as well. "Let him laugh, at least you can actually play. No one would voluntarily let him on the pitch."

"At least _I_ wouldn't," Harry grinned, having come across when he had noticed his teammate being hassled.

The match had been spectacular, Hermione had to admit, even if she didn't care much for Quidditch. Gryffindor had been in the lead until the last second when Malfoy had been only an arm length ahead of Harry and had scored his team just enough points to win. The teams had cleared the pitch, so she was about to head back towards the castle to console her friends, when a distraught Head Boy headed for the teacher's stand, still clad in his Quidditch robes.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **When they finally reached their dorm, he was shivering heavily. She nearly had to put him under the shower herself as he didn't seem in the state to move around anymore. He looked like he just wanted to lie down right there on the heavy carpet and roll in on himself. She refused to think about her heart clenching painfully at this sight. He seemed so vulnerable in that moment that it felt forbidden to look at him at all.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Have you noticed that Ron started maturing a little? :D I think I like him, when he isn't a complete dunderhead.**

 **I'm sorry that Draco is still such a prick :O I didn't know what came over me, he acted all on his own, I promise! :D Sometimes my characters act a little on their own and I just can't help it.**

 _Thank you KoolStoryBro13 and Nora Fares for helping me with this chapter!_


	23. He's Ill

**I know it's been longer than the promised two weeks since the last update...**

 **I'm only a little bit sorry, because I had a whole lot to do (writing for the QLFC and stuff); but I've been neglecting this story not only because of that but mostly because this chapter was a real bitch :'D**

 **I wrote it pretty early in the writing process (because who writes chronologically anyhow? :'D ) and it lacked the flow I had learned in the process of writing this story. There were sooo many sentences that were just horrible to read and the plot was a mess :D Believe me, you wouldn't have wanted to read the chapter how it was in the first draft.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **The match had been spectacular, Hermione had to admit, even if she didn't care much for Quidditch. Gryffindor had been in the lead until the last second when Malfoy had been only an arm length ahead of Harry and had scored his team just enough points to win. The teams had cleared the pitch, so she was about to head back towards the castle to console her friends, when a distraught Head Boy headed for the teacher's stand, still clad in his Quidditch robes.**

* * *

"Professor Snape sent the other students back to their common rooms already so no one else gets lost in the search," Hermione informed Malfoy. He was standing by the lake, just at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, his long gaze lost in the distance above the undisturbed water. The wind, that had shaken the Quidditch stands just hours ago, had completely died down with the setting sun. The following silence felt completely out of place and brought on an unsettling, eerie atmosphere.

"We won't find Hanley this late anyhow," he stated; Malfoy seemed defeated even though he had won the match.

"The teachers will continue looking for him. They'll find him. According to Hagrid, even the Centaurs agreed to keep their eyes open. If he's in the forest, they'll bring him back."

"Yeah, _if_ he's in the forest," Malfoy repeated her words – he didn't believe them. He ran his hands through his hair, which was still messy from the match.

She searched for his eyes.

"Don't worry, they will find him eventually," she said and edged closer to him, feeling ever so tempted to put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Although, she didn't quite understand his concern.

Malfoy's position as Head Boy gave him some kind of responsibility for the students' wellbeing, but despite Hanley being on the Slytherin Quidditch team, Malfoy didn't really warm to the boy. In fact Malfoy seemed to get annoyed by Hanley's attitude, which Hermione thought was ironic as her opinion was that Hanley acted like Malfoy did in his younger years at school

No, Hermione couldn't wrap her head around Malfoy's stance in this. He never really cared for anyone but himself – when Nott had fallen off his broom during the Quidditch match, Malfoy had replaced him with Hanley quicker than he could say 'Snitch'.

"It's alright. He's lost, he's not dead," she told him with a worried frown. Regardless of why Malfoy was concerned about Hanley, her heart still (perhaps unwillingly) went out to the troubled looking wizard in front of her.

Malfoy laughed bitterly. "You really think Hanley is fucking lost?" He turned and looked at her with a patronizing attitude.

"You think he was taken?" Her eyes widened as she jumped to the conclusion. "Do you believe the… you know- that _You-Know-Who_ took Hanley?"

"Why would the Dark Lord be interested in taking some unimportant boy without influential family members or friends?" he said. "No, that idiot probably went to join them all on his own. You haven't heard him talk in the Slytherin common room. He was _impressed_ by the Dark Lord's power, was _awed_ by what he does." He shook his head and Hermione noticed that he was holding his left arm in a vice-like grip.

"No," she gasped. "No, don't even think about that!" She grabbed his wrist, stepping closer. His hand was ice cold, she realised. She looked down at his attire and found it odd that he was still in his Quidditch gear and wore no cloak or scarf to keep warm.

Hermione looked up to his face and realised Malfoy was absolutely freezing – so much so that his lips were turning blue!

"Come on, we've been out here long enough. Let the school handle this." Without another word, she pulled him along towards the castle, and he followed reluctantly.

By the time they finally reached their dorm, he was shivering rapidly.

He looked like he just wanted to lie down right there on the heavy carpet and curl in on himself. She refused to think about her heart clenching painfully at this sight. He seemed so vulnerable in that moment that it felt forbidden to look at him at all.

Growing more frightened with every passing minute that Malfoy could be developing hypothermia, she dragged him into the bathroom. What was worse was that he wasn't even fighting against her manhandling of him as she pushed him through the bathroom door.

Shaking her head, she clicked her tongue. "What were you thinking, going outside in this weather without so much as a coat?" she said to him as she reached into the shower to turn on the brass taps.

Water soaked her arms through her sleeves as she adjusted the water to a more suitable temperature.

She turned back to him. "Come on, I'm sure you can get under the shower yourself." But he was struggling with his Quidditch gloves, the thin leather clinging to his clammy skin.

"Here," she sighed, pulling them off for him, closing her warm hands around his icy fingers. She then proceeded to take off his protective gear, but she hadn't even opened the bracers, when he pulled his arms back.

"Don't touch me," he hissed, but through the shivering it sounded so unsteady that she had a hard time putting on a scowl.

"Fine, do it yourself. I'll be outside, try not to slip and die."

She waited out the door, sitting on the ground with her back to the wall. Silently counting the minutes, she rested her tired eyes for a while. Fatigue claimed her. They had been searching for hours, rounding the castle more than once, walking up and down the undulating Scottish lands.

The opening of the bathroom door jostled her back to her senses, and she looked up to find Malfoy staring down at her. He seemed to have trouble focusing her though, as he squinted his eyes and let out a heavy, exhausted breath. He opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, possibly insult her, but the words weighted down heavy and in his exhaustion he remained mute.

"Get some rest, Malfoy." Hermione got up from the ground and pushed him towards his room. She couldn't bring up any of her usual irritation she felt towards him that moment. Maybe it was because of how tired she was, but maybe it was because he seemed so devastated that moment, his inner turmoil bared in his exhaustion – he seemed almost human.

When he was finally tucked into bed, which she oversaw personally, Hermione went to sleep herself. She tossed and turned, thinking about how troubled Malfoy had been at the notion of Hanley joining the Death Eaters. She racked her brain about the troublesome boy until she jumped out of her bed as if lightning had struck her, donning her woollen cloak, slipping into her shoes and leaving her dorm at a brisk pace. Haunted by a sudden flash of genius, she ran through the castle, cursing the long way up the hundreds of steps. She never had felt so out of breath, when she finally stopped in front of the Fat Lady and rushed out the password.

Stopping only briefly to take a deep breath, she made her war towards the boys' dorms.

"Harry! Harry, wake up!" Hermione shook his shoulders as she spoke.

"Holy-! Whoa! 'Mione, what… you… here…" he managed to croak out, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and searching for his glasses. Some others around them had woken up as well and Hermione could make out Neville's head in the dark, sticking out from the curtains curiously.

"Harry, I need the map. Where is the map?" she asked impatiently, close to shaking him by his shoulders to get him moving.

"The map?" he asked confused and sat up. "The map!" he shouted, finally fully awake, coming to the same conclusion she had. "Dunno why I didn't think of that before…" He started rummaging around his trunk beside his bed.

"Well, I'm the clever one, am I not?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

Grinning in response, he unfolded the map between them and tapped it with his wand. " _I solemnly swear that I am up to no good_!" The ink spread on the paper before them and they began to search it for a little spot named Niles Hanley.

Hermione looked at all the hiding places she knew. But when all of them appeared to be empty, the hope she was holding slowly faded.

That is until Harry cried: "there he is!" He pointed at a spot on the outer corner of the map.

Hermione leaned forward to find his finger pointing at the boathouse.

"Thank god!" she exclaimed and already turned to go there. When she reached the stairs leading outside, Harry caught up with her, having thrown over a cloak as well. Together, they made their way through the castle halls, which lay dark and silent before them. Even the teachers must have given up the search as they only came across the Grey Lady, who hid at their sight.

When they made their way down the stone steps to the lake, Hermione stopped Harry at the last landing. "Let me talk to him first," she asked of him after she had caught her breath. It came out in puffs, forming little clouds in the freezing air. "We shouldn't both jump on him at the same time. He might run away or do something even more stupid."

Reaching the boathouse, Hermione gave Harry a reassuring nod before taking out her wand and carefully slipped through the softly squeaking doors.

* * *

Hermione was worried. It was Saturday and Malfoy usually showed up quite early, but now it was nearly noon and she hadn't seen him yet. She couldn't abide it any longer so she got up from her place on the couch and trotted up the stairs.

"Malfoy!" She knocked on his door. "Malfoy, are you in there? Open up!" Hermione waited but nothing happened, no sound came from the other side of the door. She knocked again. "Malfoy, I'm coming in!" she warned him as she gingerly turned the doorknob and pushed open the door. She peered around the corner into the room. He was still in bed, she discovered, and he didn't look anything like himself.

"Malfoy?" She called him quietly. He groaned and turned away from her. She stepped inside his room and around his bed to get a better look at him. Hermione nearly had a heart attack when she was greeted by an orange furball bolting from underneath the bed. Impatiently, she shooed Crookshanks away, wondering how he had gotten into the room. She then took a good look at Malfoy.

He was pale and sweaty and the air in the room was stale.

"Don't worry," she told him. "I'll get you something so you'll feel better." It was no wonder that he had caught a cold after running around outside in only his Quidditch gear, still sweaty from the recently won match. She quickly opened a window to let in a bout of fresh air. She closed it again before she left, promising him she'd be right back.

Hermione made her way towards the Hospital Wing, hoping that Madam Pomfrey had some potion to help him in stock.

"Granger," Nott greeted her. He was lying on one of the hospital beds, his arm in a sling.

Hermione wondered why he even bothered talking to her. He never had any nice words for her anyway. "What do you want, Nott? I don't have all day."

"No need to get your knickers in a twist. I heard Hanley went missing for a few hours yesterday after they catered me off from the match."

She nodded. "But we found him."

"Yeah, I was just wondering, is he alright? Draco, I mean. He hasn't visited yet."

For a brief second, Hermione just wanted to tell Nott that he probably wasn't important enough for Draco to visit him, just to see his face fall and to pay him back for being such an arsehole to her all the time. But there was no taunting now, no slurs, just open concern for his friend.

"He's ill," she said.

Nott nodded and Hermione proceeded to knock at Madam Pomfrey's office door.

"Come in!" the matron called.

Hermione asked for a Pepperup potion, but the school nurse had run out of stock. "I'm sorry, Miss Granger. I just handed out my last potion to the strayingMr Hanley. I ordered a new batch from Professor Snape; maybe you'll be more lucky if you ask him."

So Hermione went down to the Potions professors' office, where she found the man brewing.

"Professor Snape?"

"Yes, Miss Granger?" he acknowledged her with mild irritation in his voice, not pausing to stir.

"I just came from the Hospital Wing where Madam Pomfrey told me to ask you for a Pepperup, Sir."

"You don't seem ill to me, Miss Granger and if your friends feel sick they are welcome to see me on their own," he refused her and turned back to his cauldron.

"No, it's not for my friends, Sir. I need it for someone else." She tried to persuade him without outright telling him that she had actually come on Malfoy's behalf, somehow, she felt self-conscious about it.

"No need to hide from the fact that, additionally to their homework, you are doing errands for your so-called friends like a common house-elf," he mocked her.

"It is for Malfoy, Sir," she replied, looking him square in the eyes and daring him to say anything.

He just raised an eyebrow at her, but then silently reached into his shelf to produce a small vial handing it to her. "He'll feel better after drinking this," he told her. "But I advise him to stay in bed for the rest of the day."

"Yes Sir. I'll pass that on to Malfoy," she promised and made her way back to the head dorms.

She took a longer route to pass by the kitchens and asked Dobby to bring some herbal tea for Malfoy as well and when she entered their common room, a steaming mug stood on the table. She took it with her up the stairs and gently knocked on Malfoy's door before pushing it open.

He was still lying there like death himself and pulled the blankets over his head as she entered. "Go away!" he demanded in a husky voice and began coughing. "Let me die alone…"

"Stop whining, you are no better than you were at twelve, Malfoy," she chastised him gently and put the tea on his nightstand. She cast a warming charm on the mug to prevent it from growing cold before she crouched down next to his bed to gingerly tug the blankets aside.

He glared at her but his sick hue didn't do his usually menacing character any good so she just smiled back. "Here," she produced the vial Professor Snape had given her. She rolled her eyes when he examined it sceptically. "It's from Professor Snape. I'm not going to poison you. If I wanted you dead, I could just leave you alone with an open window."

Glaring at her, he uncorked the vial without further complaint and downed the content in one go. He pulled a face at which she smiled again. "What did you expect? Pumpkin juice?"

He rolled onto his back wiping at his tired eyes. "Why are you in my room?" Malfoy demanded to know, his voice still throaty.

"You didn't show up so I was worried." She shrugged and sat down on the ground next to his bed, leaning against his nightstand.

"Don't you have friends to worry about?" he groaned.

"Actually, I wanted to inform you that we found Hanley, so I was waiting for you to show up the whole morning."

At that he turned towards her again. "Who found him?"

"I did," she answered. He frowned at her so she elaborated. "Had a little help from Harry actually, he… knows his ways around the grounds best," she skived around the truth. "Hanley was hiding in the boathouse all along. He was angry at the world for missing the Quaffle. I told him that he did a good job and, because you caught the Snitch, Slytherin won anyway, so nobody was mad at him. We had a long talk about team play and all that angsty teenage stuff," she smiled.

"What a fucking loser," Malfoy groaned, slowly becoming his old self again as the potion took effect. She had never expected that she would miss him acting all snarky and mean, but the mood she had caught him in yesterday had pushed everything positive out of her, sucking at her vigour like a Dementor. She had felt cold and empty, seeing him like that; it really had been disconcerting.

"I'll be just downstairs. If you need anything, you've got the Joint Mirror to contact me, but I think it will be best if you try to sleep." She took her leave, turning back at the door to add, "Don't forget to drink the tea I brought."

Later that day, when she brought him a bowl of chicken broth, he seemed much better already and she was relieved when he threw her out of his room after hungrily accepting the soup.

* * *

Content that Malfoy was getting better, Hermione met with her friends on the grounds by the lake. It was surprisingly sunny and even though the air was still freezing cold, many students enjoyed their Sunday outside.

"Harry, I was wondering if I was You-Know-Who, and I wanted to hide something in the castle, where would the best place be?" Ron asked. Harry shrugged clueless, skipping a pebble across the lake. "You have to keep in mind that the guy is a narcissistic loon and thinks he's superior to anyone and therefore knows the castle better than Dumbledore himself," Ron continued. "He would hide it somewhere he believed only himself knew because he is more clever than others."

"The Chamber?" Harry asked. "Even Dumbledore couldn't find it."

"No, I don't think he would bet two Horcruxes on one horse, and he made the Diary to get back into the Chamber," Hermione mused.

"Somewhere hidden where you have to be at least a bit clever to find out where it is and how to get inside…" Harry trailed off, his face going slack. "You don't mean-? No! That would be presumptuous. How can Voldemort believe he's the only one who's ever been there?"

"You have to remember who he is! He is bloody ignorant; otherwise, he wouldn't have underestimated you so often. Hell, without his arrogance he would be ruling this world for sixty years already, I bet!"

"That makes sense, Harry," Hermione agreed. "Ron, that was quite clever to try to think like Voldemort."

He grinned sheepishly. "That's why I'm so good at chess I think. Also, I've had an epiphany on the toilet yesterday," he blushed a little at that admission. "Can't believe I've been so blind the whole time. When you think about it, it's rather obvious."

"So you're saying the Horcrux is somewhere in the Room of Requirement?" Harry asked, unbelieving. "Isn't that a tad too obvious? I didn't even know you could store something in there. Doesn't it change permanently?"

"Well, I guess if you place something in one room, it would only be available there," Hermione said. "This way, Voldemort must have believed it to be safe, even if anyone ever encountered the room. You wouldn't be able to find it as long as you don't know what kind of room he asked for to hide it. A bit like Muggle computers and passwords, I think. You won't be able to enter without the right request."

Harry nodded pensively. "So how are we going to find out what room we are looking for exactly?"

Hermione looked at Ron. "I'm confident we can come up with something. You've got more insight into his mind than anybody else, Harry, and Ron apparently is able to put himself into anybody's shoes if he has enough information."

Ron grinned sheepishly. "I can try at least."

"Why don't we give it a head start? Most students are outside and no one will notice us."

They moved back inside the caste without attracting attention and made their way up to the seventh floor. Reaching the empty stretch of wall, they debated how to start their search.

"Let me try something," Hermione said and walked up and down in front of the wall until a door appeared.

She pushed it open to reveal a gothic hall with windows stretching towards heaven. The room was filled with stacks of books, broken furniture, trainloads of trinkets and stuffed creatures littering the space, traversed by narrow alleys meandering through them. Her friends entered behind Hermione, marvelling at the mess.

"Do you feel anything, Harry?" she asked.

He frowned and shook his head. "No it's not here, I think."

Hermione's shoulders slumped. "I guessed so, but it was worth a try."

"What did you ask for?" Ron inquired.

"A place to hide something."

"Wow, can you imagine how many people have been here to hide stuff?" He marvelled at the piles of knickknacks and heavily loaded shelves.

"I guess that is the same conclusion Voldemort came to when he decided _not_ to hide it here like anybody else."

"So we're starting from scratch, right?" Harry asked, feeling gutted.

Hermione shrugged. "Apparently. We need to come up with a request that leads us to the right room."

Ron shuddered. "It must be something horrible. Actually, I'm not sure if we should do this on our own. What if there's some monster like the Basilisk inside to protect it?"

"That isn't unlikely. But I'm not sure if he'd even be able to get something too dangerous inside. It must have been hard enough to hide the Horcrux without Professor Dumbledore noticing," Hermione said.

"What if it's a room that never opens again?" Ron groaned. "That would explain why we couldn't get inside yet."

"That would be a bit impractical if he wants to relocate the Horcrux," Harry remarked.

"Then maybe a room that kills everybody who enters!"

"That would bring the same problem, Ron. Stay focused, will you?" Hermione chastised.

"Maybe it needs a password like our common rooms, or we need to solve a riddle because there's a sphinx inside?" Harry suggested

"I'm not sure if the room works with passwords. But we can forget even trying if that's the case so let's hope that it isn't secured with a password..."

After several tries to come up with possible rooms to hide something in, they slumped down on a comfortable sofa, resembling the worn furniture in the Gryffindor common room. They all would rather enjoy the nice weather outside so the room provided them a replica of the Great Hall's ceiling. But it didn't quite feel like real sunshine.

"We just need to keep trying," Hermione encouraged her boys.

Harry nodded. "We'll do this every evening until we make progress, alright?"

Hermione was about to protest that she needed the evening for extra learning, but shut her mouth with an audible click, when she received stern glances from both Harry and Ron. "Okay, okay," she held up her hands in defeat. "But we can at least do some revising afterwards."

So, they spent every minute of their evenings in the Room of Requirement, trying new requests rather unsystematically to Hermione's chagrin. But she couldn't come up with a more directed approach.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"Guys, Percy has answered about the Ministry's depots," Ron whispered at breakfast.**

 **:::::::::::**

 **Did you miss me? :D How did you like the part with Draco and Hermione? Are you curious to know how Harry, Ron and Hermione are going to find the next Horcrux?**

 **FYI: I only recently discovered the fantastic uses of semicolons and – believe it or not – I was not aware that there are different kinds of hyphens in the English language (who NEEDS that?). So prepare for more of these: ; and more of these: -, – :D**

 ** _Thank you very much to Fantasticlanvendercrystals who helped me to remove some major flaws this chapter had (and of course my loyal beta KSB!)._**


	24. He's Honest

**My lovelies, I know I keep you waiting, but I don't want to give you half-arsed chapters that aren't nearly as good as they are after editing and rewriting and editing again. I hope you think the extra work was worth it.**

 **If you want to know how far along I am with the next chapter, you can always check out my profile. I give updates on my multi-chapter stories, what my update schedule and plan with the story is and at which stage in the editing process I am.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **So, they spent every minute of their evenings in the Room of Requirement, trying new requests rather unsystematically to Hermione's chagrin. But she couldn't come up with a more directed approach.**

* * *

"Guys, Percy wrote me an answer about the Ministry's depots," Ron whispered at breakfast.

"Oy, what are you three up to this time?" Dean Thomas interrupted. "Don't do anything stupid and risk our chances of winning the house cup, you hear me? It's my last year, and I really wanna win this one last time!"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Maybe you shouldn't chat with Seamus in every class then and earn some points instead."

"You got me there," he grinned, raising his hands in defeat and scurried off to join his best friend a few seats down.

"Let's read it together tonight," Hermione proposed quietly when he was out of hearing range, and Harry and Ron nodded in agreement.

* * *

They met in the Room of Requirement that evening, huddling around Ron who read the letter aloud.

 _Ronald,_

 _Your letter has been received with delight; I thank you for asking about my well-being._

 _I have recently recovered from a mild magic rhinitis, but Penelope has prematurely returned from her work trip to Germany to take care of me. She was assigned to negotiate with the German legislators about harvesting rights of British vendors in an area called Schwarzwald where several valuable herbs thrive._

"Ugh what do I care? Honestly, Percy writes his letters exactly how he talks: coma-inducingly boring," Ron groaned.

"Go on," Hermione urged him, leaning over the back of the couch he was sitting on to get a better view of the letter. She didn't expect a big reveal or an important clue, but whatever information Percy had for them could prove helpful nonetheless. She hoped that it would help her to better understand what Voldemort was planning.

Ron continued reading aloud:

 _With joy, I would also like to announce that Penelope is now three months along, and you will have a little nephew or niece at the end of summer._

"Ron! Congratulations." Harry clapped him on the back.

Ron stared at the letter, frozen. "Can you believe this?" He looked at them, his eyes widened in excitement. "I'm going to be an uncle! Or an aunt?"

Hermione laughed. "No, definitely an uncle, Ron. The gender of the child won't change yours, will it?"

He looked at her puzzled and then blushed a deep shade of red. "Guess not," he mumbled as Harry and Hermione burst in a fit of laughter.

"Okay, guys. I'm going to continue reading now, so if you don't want to miss anything, you better shut up," he muttered grouchily.

"Alright, alright mate!" Harry held his hands up.

 _Leaving the niceties aside, I would like to make sure that you will not breathe a word about that to mother. I swear, I will hang you on the wizard's wand of the ministry fountain by your underpants if you spill the beans before I officially declare the news at the next family meeting._

Ron swallowed at that threat. Just because Percy was usually prim, didn't mean he wasn't related to the Weasley twins. He could give just as good as them if provoked too much.

 _Now, coming to your questions: At first I have to remind you how highly inappropriate it is of you to ask me about such high profile information. As Dumbledore did not think of coming to me and demanding these—in my opinion, extremely relevant—details yet, I am willing to give them to you regardless, with the hope that my observational skills are appreciated._

"Always one to think he deserves to be in the centre of attention," Ron shook his head.

"Go on, I'm curious what he has to report," Hermione urged him.

 _It is interesting that you ask about the Ministry depot they broke into because in the case files, not a single item was reported missing. Therefore, the break-in was more or less ignored by the press, and even Ministry officials consider it unimportant. But in the great scheme of things, I discovered an interesting fact—I have tried talking to my superior about the apparent relations, but, as the Ministry is at the end of its capacity at the moment, my request to investigate further was refused._

"He really has a knack for beating about the bush… he would make for a great politician," Hermione observed. She was slightly annoyed with Percy's reluctance to offer the important information straight up.

"Oh, I think he plans to be the head of the M.L.D. within the next five years. I bet he's aiming for the Minister's position in the long run," Ron said, before returning his attention to the letter.

 _What I am about to tell you has not been officially approved, so do not nail me down on my assertions if they turn out to be wrong eventually. As it happens, the aforementioned depot was visited by an Unspeakable the day of the break-in. He claimed that he hid the moment he noticed the breach in the protective wards until Aurors reached the site. Just a week later, that same Unspeakable committed suicide. He had recently lost his aunt, his only relative apparently, so the Ministry did not investigate further—although, with Unspeakables, it is standard procedure to investigate every inconsistency in their behaviour to avoid bribery and the like._

 _I am still collecting information on said Unspeakable, but it is difficult not only because his work is top secret, but also because I am loaded with work and can only conduct this research in my incredibly scarce free time._

Ron rolled his eyes at Percy's antics. "He can't write a sentence without putting himself in the center of attention and praising his own work."

"Well, he did more than he was required to. We should be thankful," Hermione reminded him.

 _My theory is, that the intruders were never after any objects stored at the depot. Safety measurements are at an all-time high at the Ministry, and Unspeakables' homes are exceptionally well-protected. They must have seen this as an opportunity to catch said Unspeakable off-guard._

 _For now, I could only gather that he was working on a project about the connection between body and mind, and how the soul is the drive of the body. He was researching how the loss of the soul influences the body, and how the soul could be influenced directly._

 _I suppose Hermione will already know the implications of that and will want to research the subject further; I can highly recommend_ Soul Magic and Death _and_ The Dementor's Kiss _by_ _Loreley Midwash. I also heard that Bathilda Bagshot has been researching the history of Gellert Grindelwald for her newest book. He was known for being obsessed with the threshold between life, death and what happens to the soul in the moment of death._

Hermione covered her mouth with her hand, unable to contain the horror that crossed her features. "Oh god, I was hoping that I had been wrong." She looked at her friends. "This is bad, bad news."

They shared a worried look.

"Anything else?" Harry asked Ron, nodding at the letter.

"Just some more empty phrases and another threat to keep the pregnancy secret," Ron summarised with a quick glance at the bottom of the letter.

"Hermione, do you have any theory on why Voldemort is looking for a way to control souls?" Harry asked.

Hermione shuddered. "Well, the first picture that comes to my mind is a zombie apocalypse."

Harry looked taken aback, and Ron just looked confused.

Hermione waved her hands, trying to form an explanation simple enough for them to grasp the concept. "I mean, creating Inferi and controlling them is _very_ difficult; creating a large number of them takes quite a long time, and you have practically no control over them. Only very skilled wizards would even be able to create an Inferi." She didn't try to go into any details, remembering how vague and deeply unsettling the few books she had found on the topic had been.

"I suppose Voldemort is looking for an alternative, easier and more controllable way to turn large numbers of people—I'm guessing Muggles—into dangerous creatures that serve a specific purpose and then just turn into lifeless shells, leaving the destroyed world in his hands to rebuilt how he imagines it."

"An army of the dead," Harry supplied, looking slightly green in the face.

Hermione nodded. "Even with all the Death Eaters fighting at the same time, he would be far inferior in numbers. If each of them would be able to control, say a hundred souls in a battle, all of wizarding Britain would be outnumbered by far. There would be no chance to win against that body force."

"Hermione, you're scaring me…"

"Yes, it scares me too." Hermione hugged herself. The room felt cold all of sudden. "Those experiments on Muggles, Bathilda Bagshot researching Gellert Grindelwald… it all makes sense. I've read about some of his theories; they were never meant to be implemented. He said that himself. Even Grindelwald was reluctant to overstep the boundaries of the soul to that extend."

Hermione nervously fiddled with the seam of her sleeve. She couldn't help but think about those poor Muggles being treated as lab rats for Voldemort's evil schemes. Those Muggles could have been someone she knew. It could have been people like her parents, like her neighbours, with jobs and kids and loved ones. How truly frightening it must be to be at the hand of a madman who possessed powers you didn't even understand, who did things to your body and mind that you couldn't comprehend with your knowledge of the world.

Oh, how she wished for the blissful ignorance of Muggles, occasionally reading terrible news and thinking that it wouldn't affect them personally, that it was just a random lunatic who could be locked away in an asylum.

Harry kicked the couch in frustration. "That means we've already lost. This is a waste of time."

"No, Harry." Hermione put a reassuring hand on his arm. They couldn't afford to give up hope yet. "He hasn't reached his goals yet. We would know the moment he did, I'm sure. We still have a chance, we just need to be faster—we need to find his Horcruxes."

"We should probably alert Dumbledore," Ron said, his face betraying his alarm at their findings.

"He's still negotiating with the Goblins and gathering forces somewhere in America for at least a month or two…" Harry trailed off. "No one else can know about the Horcruxes. If Voldemort finds out that we are destroying them, it'll be all over. We can't risk being discovered. We are on our own in this now."

Hermione rubbed her eyes. Their situation seemed hopeless. How could they win against this? Had they ever had a chance?

"It's getting late. I think we all need a good night's sleep," she said. "We'll meet here again tomorrow and try to get that blasted Horcrux. Maybe someone will have a flash of genius by then." Hermione was exhausted; she was frustrated how her mind completely shut down when it came to retracing Voldemort's footsteps. She just couldn't fathom how someone could think in a way so deranged and outright evil.

* * *

Hermione returned to her common room, finding Malfoy brooding over his homework. She wondered if he knew about Voldemort's plans, whether he would still support something like that. All of sudden, she felt incredibly lost, unable to tell which part of Malfoy was the one she believed in.

Was he redeemable? Was he maybe already lost? She couldn't look into his head, and Hermione was aware that she was not a pessimist; she always assumed the best in people. All too often, she had been disappointed in that assumption.

Who could tell if Malfoy really felt remorseful about his association with Voldemort? He declared his superiority to her often enough. What if he was still a loyal follower, waiting for his chance to prove his worth to his master, waiting for an opportunity to strike? Maybe he had been spying on her all along, and Voldemort already knew about all their plans and their progress through Malfoy. Maybe the cause was already lost and had been for many weeks.

She had been careful to hide her investigation from Malfoy, putting at least five interwoven locking charms on her drawer, where all of her notes on the Horcrux hunt were stored, but she wasn't naïve. Locking charms could be broken with enough skill and patience. Malfoy certainly was capable enough if he knew what he was looking for.

Voldemort likely knew all along and played a sadistic game of cat and mouse with them for pure entertainment. _Let's see how clever the little Mudblood is and mess with her mind some. Give her some hope to crush it under our boots when the time comes._

Downbeat by her pessimistic thoughts, Hermione slumped on the seat across from Malfoy. He eyed her curiously. For a moment, it seemed as if he wanted to say something, but then he turned back to his work without sparing her a second glance.

She had the strangest longing for him to smile at her that moment. Just to see a proof of his humanity under all those layers of hate and arrogance. Just to feel the elatedness that came with his rare smiles. He had one of those smiles that made people crave for more, wish for being the one it was directed at; a smile that fed an unhealthy addiction, because it was so successful in masking his true persona. Of course, Hermione had never been at the receiving end of one of those smiles; she was a Muggleborn after all. But she had seen its effect on others often enough to feel an inappropriate jealousy.

He sighed and looked up at her again. "What's wrong, Granger?" he asked in a bored drawl. "Are you trying to gouge a hole in my head by staring at me?"

She felt the need to shoot a clever answer back at him, but it got stuck in her throat, the sinking despair that had claimed her rendered her mute, so she just shook her head and lowered her gaze.

He seemed intrigued by her unusual glumness as he kept his gaze fixed on her.

She squirmed in her seat. "It's getting dark," she excused herself weakly and stood to escape his silent assessment.

The corner of his mouth quirked up in agreement, causing Hermione to suck in a breath. It was a smile, a sad one, but it was directed at her. Somehow, she felt that he wasn't agreeing because of the setting sun casting long shadows through the murky water of the lake, but because of a different, colder darkness that claimed their lives these days. A chill ran up her spine, and Hermione tore her eyes from his and fled to her room.

* * *

Hermione was restless that night. No sleep claimed her; instead there were images of shadowy figures scurrying down the streets of her hometown in search for new victims flashing before her eyes.

It was time for one of her late night walks, she decided and pulled a cardigan over her top before descending down the stairs to the common room.

"Can't sleep?"

She whirled around to find Malfoy standing by the fireplace, the still gleaming ash casting long shadows on his face.

He was regarding her like a predator stalking its prey, but Hermione refused to shy away. She wasn't going to be vulnerable around him again, she had learned her lesson that day he had immobilised her. _Barking dogs don't bite_ , she reminded herself, as she took a daring step forward.

"You neither, I see," she replied.

Suddenly, he seemed to deflate, tiredness apparent in his posture. "No."

She noticed that he was clutching his left forearm. He noticed her gaze as well.

"It burns," he confessed with an unexpected openness.

Hermione's heart did a twitch when she refused to let herself feel sorry for him. He didn't want her pity, and he didn't deserve it either. But her chest felt tight when he slumped down on the couch, elbows leaning on his knees and his head hanging low. How could she not feel for him when he was so vulnerable, so openly suffering?

"Have you tried cooling it?" she asked, slowly moving closer until she stood in front of him.

He looked up at her in a way that made her mentally prepare for an insult, but then he just closed his eyes and leaned back against the cushions. Noting that he was still wearing his uniform, Hermione concluded that he hadn't even attempted to sleep.

The desire to reach out and help conflicted with her insecurity when it came to calculating his next move. With Malfoy it always was like a constant dance around an explosive.

She settled down next to him, pulling her legs up on the couch to avoid the freezing marble floor.

"Why do you even care, Granger?"

She scoffed. "Because I'm a decent human being."

"You like to think you are at least." He watched her from the corner of his eyes.

"Don't you agree?" She tilted her head to the side, curious where this unusually open conversation was going.

He pulled a face. "You are so bloody perfect it's annoying."

"Except I'm not, am I?" she said bitterly. "I'm nothing but a Mug-Mudblood." The word tasted foul on her tongue.

His head turned, and he contemplated her intently. "You know how I feel about you." It was a statement, not a question.

"Could have fooled me, because sometimes you are actually acting civil and treat me like a fellow human and not like the dirt under your shoes." She wanted to challenge him, to shove his hypocrisy in his face so he had no way to deny it. A sudden fury had ignited in her chest, driven by the knowledge of having the upper hand in a conversation for once. An urge to hurt him with her words just how he hurt her again and again burned on her tongue.

He closed his eyes, drawing a hissing breath, and in the blink of an eye, the flame that had flared up inside her was snuffed out. Oh, she despised him for treating her like trash, for insulting her friends for years, but Hermione couldn't quite bring herself to feel true hatred towards him. He was just a boy lost in a war, lost in a world that hadn't ever presented him an alternative to his way of life.

"Why does it hurt?" she asked.

"It's p-punishment for not following like sheep."

"It isn't constantly burning, is it?"

"Only s-sometimes," he groaned, his fists clenching and unclenching. "Mostly at night, just to s-spite me. I don't think he can keep it burning for too long." The last statement was voiced more like a question, desperation etched onto his face.

Carefully, Hermione reached out for his arm and pulled it free from his grasp. His tightened jaw betrayed the tension in his body, but he didn't move, didn't pull away from her gentle hands as she opened the tiny buttons on his cuffs.

The skin around the hideous mark was raised and red as if the tattoo was still fresh. The sight of it should have disgusted Hermione, but instead, she watched the snake squirm around the skull with a perverse fascination. Its forked tongue lashed out as it rippled over his skin.

He twitched when she touched the Dark Mark with the tip of her wand, and she quickly muttered a light cooling charm that she used on her tea to avoid burning her tongue. Hermione didn't dare to use a stronger charm, in fear that the magic emitting from the mark would interact with it and cause him more pain.

He sighed, indicating that the pain had eased somewhat at least.

Hermione wondered how one moment he could lash out at her whenever he was troubled and the other he could accept her help so easily. Malfoy seemed to have two default modes only. She was on thin ice she felt, but when was a better opportunity to find out more about his connection to Voldemort than now? She didn't even really know why he had turned on him in the first place.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked. "Why crucifying yourself when you could just follow him like the rest of them?"

He scoffed, pulling his arm free. "What are you playing at, Granger? Did Dumbledore send you to check on my loyalties?"

She didn't reply. Technically he didn't, but it was still what she was doing, and Hermione knew that she was a terrible liar.

He looked at her, seeing right through her, but the expected rage about this failed to materialise.

"You-you don't have to answer," she said, casting her head down as she suddenly felt ashamed for prying.

"It's my mother."

Surprised, her head shot up again to find him gazing into the dying embers in front of them.

"Dumbledore promised to keep her safe. I don't want her to be anywhere near _Him_."

"She's in a safe-house?" Hermione asked, and he nodded. "And in turn you had to turn yourself in." He nodded again.

Hermione fiddled with her sleeve, gaze fixed on her fingers as she contemplated that information. If Dumbledore had put Mrs Malfoy's safety on the condition that her son would betray his evil, murderous master, would he have denied her protection had Draco refused to openly defect?

She wasn't sure she was content with this status quo. Why hadn't Dumbledore opted for a more subtle approach—a solution where Draco wouldn't have needed to openly turn his back on Voldemort? That could have saved him so much suffering at not only the hands of Voldemort himself, but also the Ministry. He could have just promised to not actively work for Voldemort. Instead, Dumbledore had chosen the most extreme way, forcing Draco to potentially face prison or the wrath of Voldemort himself, and Hermione knew well that those that turned on the Dark Lord didn't live for long.

She heard him sigh and then groan again, his breath coming out in heavy puffs. Worried, she leaned over him. Whatever the cooling charm had eased was now coming back full force.

"I wish I could just chop it off," he whispered through clenched teeth.

Hermione felt helpless as she watched him squeeze his eyes shut, his fingers digging into his marked forearm as if he wanted to rip off the skin.

"Don't hurt yourself," she said quietly, and pulled his hand from his arm where raised scratch marks became visible. His fingers closed on hers when he tensed again, and she let him hold unto her for support until the tips of her fingers started tingling from his tight grip.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **The moment he touched the handle, an audible click indicated the door being unlocked, and suddenly Harry was jerked forwards when it swung open, pulling him along as he still held the doorknob.**

 **Hermione and Ron sprung forwards to his aid, expecting everything from ghastly spiders to a nest of giant snakes attacking him.**

 **They stopped short, when they got a real glance inside.**

 **"That's a joke, isn't it?" Ron asked.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **I've been a little nervous about this chapter because my ideas are a little different from canon here. Let me know what you think :)**

 **If you are starved for more Dramione, you can have a look at my story Liquid Love. Initially, it was a one-shot for the QLFC, but I've had many nice reviews asking for more so I decided to write one or two follow-up chapters :) It's just a short story and not ready yet, but maybe it will give you something to distract you from waiting for the next chapter of She is Clueless.**

 _You can all thank Nora Fares for that lovely piece of Draco fluff at the end of this chapter :') She threw a little tantrum when I was reluctant to move their relationship a little further :'D Also my wonderful beta KSB who's still holding my hand through this :3_


	25. They Search

**This chapter is a little shorter than the last, but I hope you enjoy it nevertheless :)**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **Hermione felt helpless as she watched him squeeze his eyes shut, his fingers digging into his marked forearm as if he wanted to rip off the skin.**

* * *

The next day, Hermione met Harry and Ron in the Room of Requirement again. All three were a little cranky and irritated from the lack of sleep. It seemed none of them had been able to close an eye after reading Percy's revelation the day before.

It had been nearly two in the morning, when Malfoy had fallen asleep on the couch out of pure exhaustion. Hermione had left for bed after making sure to carefully squeeze a pillow under his head and cover him with a blanket.

She forced herself to focus on the Horcrux, but Hermione couldn't quite forget the feeling of her hand in his. His strong grip had only eased after several minutes, and his fingers had been a little sweaty and trembling in pain, but it hadn't felt uncomfortable or even awkward. It had felt… nice; he had held onto her as if she was the only thing tethering him to this world. It was strangely comforting to her to feel so needed.

Hermione had brought Crookshanks along to the Room of Requirement, because he had yowled loudly at her for not spending enough time with him recently. The Half-Kneazle was very demanding when he wanted attention, but when she was offering, he would present her with his backside like a diva, tail raised high, shoving his asshole in her face, as if she didn't deserve to exist in his presence.

When Hermione ignored those obvious signs and still petted him, he would be very expressive about his displeasure, and she would make acquaintance with his razor-sharp claws.

Unfortunately, Harry was distracted by thinking about possible ways to hide a Horcrux in the Room of Requirement and didn't pull back quickly enough when Crookshanks lashed out at him.

"He needs a room that opens only to him. That's it!" Ron exclaimed.

"Then tell me how we are supposed to get inside if that's the case?" Hermione asked.

Harry nursed his scratched arm, sucking at the blood Crookshanks had drawn. "Bloody cat. Hermione, you didn't raise him properly," he whined.

"I didn't raise him at all, remember?" Hermione said exasperated. "He came to me when he was already grown. You shouldn't have pet him so much. He doesn't like that after a while."

"He was the one that rubbed against my leg! I even scratched his ears but he wouldn't let up until I gave him more attention. Then he suddenly lashes out at me! How is that my fault, when he was clearly begging for attention?" Harry shot the orange fur-ball a glare, but the cat only turned up his nose at him.

Crookshanks came up to Hermione, meowing and clawing at her jeans, stretching all the way, and begging her to pick him up. She sighed and obliged, cradling her Familiar in her arms.

"You are not even scolding him!" Harry threw his arms in the air. "Now he gets cuddles for scratching your best friend!"

"Come on little Crooksie, say sorry to Harry-kins!" she cooed.

Harry shook his head at her blatant favouritism. "Can you at least help me heal this?" He held out his arm, careful to keep it out of Crookshanks reach. "I'm bleeding all over the place."

"Don't be so dramatic," Hermione laughed and helped him out with a quick healing charm. He was exaggerating greatly as most of the scratches weren't bleeding at all.

"RON!" Harry whined, turning to their ginger-haired friend for support. He was however watching them with glassy eyes, a far-away look on his face. Realizing they were staring at him, Ron shook his head and gave them a wide-eyed look.

"Your cat is bloody brilliant, 'Mione!"

That was not the answer Harry had expected, and his mouth fell open to gape at his friend with a betrayed look.

"No, I mean I think I know how we can get in! Crookshanks showed us."

"You mean we have to sacrifice a disobedient cat?" Harry frowned and looked at Crookshanks intently. The Cat-Kneazle hissed back at him from the safety of Hermione's arms who didn't look any less furious.

"I mean, we know Voldemort is a sadistic maniac, Ron, but don't you think that's a bit off rocker?" Harry asked.

Ron hit his hand to his forehead. "Don't play dumb, Harry, isn't that my line? I mean the blood. _Your_ blood!"

Harry nodded. "True, Voldemort arose again he did so with my blood flowing in his veins." He wrinkled his nose at that uncomfortable memory. He rarely talked about that night, and when he did, Cedric wasn't mentioned, ever. "We should be able to get in with my blood, that could be the key."

Hermione nodded slowly, relieved that Ron hadn't proposed to do anything to her poor Crooksie.

"Wait," Harry interjected. "You mean we have to sacrifice _me_ now?!"

Ron snorted. "Just a little blood would be enough. What would it serve Voldemort if he had to kill himself to get his Horcrux back, in case he wanted to relocate it?"

"That might actually work, Ron." Hermione agreed, nodding excitedly now.

Harry looked at them sceptical but then shrugged his shoulders. "It's worth a try, isn't it?"

They left the room to stand in from of the empty stretch of wall opposite to the tapestry of Trolls in tutus.

"Okay, I think you better stand back and keep your wands out in case there is anything dangerous inside," Harry told them and started pacing in front of the wall, silently whispering the request that would hopefully open the one door that was never meant to open again.

When Harry had passed the wall for the third time, an ordinary wooden classroom door appeared.

Taking a deep breath, Harry approached it. He turned back to his friends one last time, and they nodded at him encouragingly. Hermione raised her wand, anticipation throbbing in her veins. Carefully, Harry slit the inside of his hand with a slicing hex, hissing as his blood rose to the surface. Trembling, he put his open palm against the wooden door.

Hermione held her breath, her heart beating wildly.

Nothing happened.

Harry sighted, his head falling forwards in disappointment.

"Try the handle, mate," Ron urged him.

Harry looked at him in surprise, but then seemed to understand how silly it was of him to assume the door would just swing open. When you were surrounded by so much magic, you tended to forget that you could do things manually.

The moment he touched the handle, an audible click indicated the door being unlocked, and suddenly Harry was jerked forwards when it swung open, pulling him along as he still held the doorknob.

Hermione and Ron sprung forwards to his aid, expecting everything from ghastly spiders to a nest of giant snakes attacking him.

They stopped short, when they got a real glance inside.

"That's a joke, isn't it?" Ron asked.

Hermione's eyes widened in realisation. Of course, how could she have disregarded this in her research? It was more than obvious now, that the answer was presented to her.

"No, that's it! We found it!" she shouted in excitement, taking a step closer.

"Seriously? Did you crank up completely now?" Ron threw her a worried glance.

Then his mouth formed a small O.

"You mean… honestly I didn't think he was that vain, but now that I see it, it becomes quite obvious that he misses his head of hair."

Hermione stared at him confounded until Harry fell into a fit of giggles, unable to utter a word as he clutched his stomach.

Ron looked at him alarmed. "Is he cursed? Do something Hermione!"

Harry gasped for breath, wiping tears from his eyes. "It's the crown, Ron. The crown, not the wig."

Hermione had to chuckle when she finally got the joke. Carefully she stepped closer, examining the tarnished artefact placed on top of a bust that someone had covered with a dusty old wig.

"It's a Diadem, Harry. And I think we just found Rowena Ravenclaw's missing Diadem."

"Ravenclaw's what?" Ron said, his cheeks still glowing in embarrassment at his blunder.

"Ravenclaw's Diadem is a heirloom that has been lost for nearly a thousand years!" Hermione explained excitedly. "It's said to enhance wisdom."

Harry eyed the piece of jewellery. "How do you know that?"

"I was researching on possible artefacts in the Christmas holidays and thought about the founders and what they left behind." Hermione shrugged. "I just didn't further my research, because the Diadem was considered a myth and has been missing for longer than Voldemort has been alive! I definitely need to go back to where I stopped reading, now that I know it's real. I'm sure I can find something similar from Hufflepuff as well!" Excitement was bubbling in her stomach, and she felt the tingling in her fingertips that overcame her every time she found a new research topic.

"Hermione, I think I finally have the feeling that we can manage this," Harry said, smiling slightly. "It all seemed so much, so impossible, but you—with that brilliant mind of yours—just gave me back the hope I had already given up."

"Oh Harry." She hugged him, tears prickling in her eyes. "We'll end this. I promise. And if we are turning old and deaf until we finally find the last Horcrux, we will bring this to an end together."

"What about _my_ brilliant mind?" Ron asked, offended. "It was my idea that got us into this room after all!"

"Oh, come here then," Hermione held out an arm for Ron to join them in an awkward group hug that made them laugh at their clumsiness and tangled limbs.

/

They gathered around the Diadem and contemplated whether it was safe to just pick it up. Hermione was a little nervous because the dark magic emitting from the piece of soul it hosted effectively blocked obvious signs of curses.

"How do we know nothing will happen if we touch it?" Harry asked.

Hermione frowned, going through several methods of detecting curses and harmful spells. She tried some of them, but they all came back positive due to the dark magic of the Horcrux itself.

"There is no way to be sure. We'll have to try and hope for the best," she admitted.

"Are you serious? That thing could kill us!" Ron took a step back from the bust as if its mere presence could curse him.

"We could just leave it here until we find a way to destroy it," Harry suggested, being equally sceptical about touching the Horcrux. "Although, I would feel safer to take it with us in case something unexpected happened. I don't trust Hogwarts to be as safe as everyone believes it to be."

"I agree." Hermione nodded, carefully reaching out. Her hand was trembling with anticipation.

A flash of orange threw her off balance, and Hermione couldn't contain a shriek.

With a loud mewl, Crookshanks pounced the bust and pawed the diadem off to the ground only to present it to them proudly like a freshly caught mouse.

"Uhm… well that solves that," Harry said, suppressing a chuckle.

"Crookshanks!" Hermione scooped up her cat. "That could have been dangerous," she scolded, but proceeded to ruffle the fur between his ears. "You're such a good boy, aren't you?" She cooed. She shook her head at his antics, but also felt a little proud at his bravery. He was a true Gryffindor, just like herself.

"What now?" Ron asked, picking up the Diadem and examining it.

"Dumbledore is not in the castle. I'm not sure if we should attempt to destroy it without him," Harry said.

"It's a dark artefact. It might not be cursed, but it still can be dangerous," Hermione said. "We have to store it in a place where it cannot affect anyone until we find a way to destroy it."

"You're right," Harry agreed. "But where do you think it will be safe?"

"We should definitely keep an eye on it, don't you think? And in case Voldemort used a surveillance spell to make sure the room stayed hidden, we need to keep it somewhere none of the Death Eaters' children would suspect it to retrieve it for him." Hermione went through all of the scenarios in her head.

Ron frowned, handing the Horcrux over to her for inspection. "Are you sure he even realizes that they are being destroyed one by one?"

"I'm not certain, but it can't hurt to be cautious," she reminded him. "He can be quite resourceful."

"But where can we keep it?" Harry asked.

Hermione stared at the Diadem in her hands, it was cold and heavy despite looking quite delicate. It felt somehow out of place as if it was from another dimension and just there by accident. "I don't want to store it in the Room of Requirement, someone could find it the same way we did."

"What about the Chamber of Secrets?" Ron suggested.

"No, I don't feel comfortable with the Diadem down there," Harry interjected. "We should keep it close so we can access it should we…" he trailed off, but the meaning of his words hung in the air like an approaching storm on the horizon. If Hogwarts was attacked, they would need to flee as quickly as possible.

"I can take it," Hermione said with confidence. "I mean, in my room it would be shielded from the other students quite well."

"And what about Malfoy?" Harry asked, frowning.

"That's a bonus!" Ron exclaimed. "Voldie wouldn't suspect us to hide something so close in his reach. We can sneak it right under his nose!" He seemed elated with the idea.

Harry shrugged. "Sounds good to me. I trust you Hermione."

"Then it's decided." She stored the Diadem in her bag, covering it carefully with a book she placed over it horizontally.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **"You are staring at him again." Harry remarked.**

 **She looked at him quizzically.**

 **"It's okay, you know?" he said. "If you like him I mean. You care about him. I can see that. He's good-looking as far as a bloke can judge; he's smart and charming, when he wants to be, and you've spend a lot of time together this year," he shrugged. "No deal. Don't worry about us."**

 **"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked confused.**

 **He looked at her for a long time. "Don't tell me you've got no clue?**

 **::::::::::::**

 **How did you like my alternative version for the hiding place of the Diadem? :)**


	26. She's Irritated

**Hello, hello! I know you've been waiting waaaaaaaaaay too long again... I'm moving to a new city in October so my life is being turned upside down right now. I'm doing my best to keep working on the story and not lose my writing flow, I promise :)**

 **::::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 **"I don't feel comfortable with the Diadem down there," Harry interjected. "We should keep it close so we can access it should we…" he trailed off, but the meaning of his words hung in the air like an approaching storm on the horizon. If Hogwarts was attacked, they would need to flee as quickly as possible.**

 **"I can take it," Hermione said with confidence. "I mean, in my room it would be shielded from the other students quite well."**

* * *

The next week, Hermione found herself in the restricted section every night to research the Diadem and how it worked. Usually, she would have been more reluctant to enter the Restricted Section without permission, but her curiosity won over her sense of rules. She felt like she needed as much information about the Horcruxes as possible. They might need it when they would finally destroy the piece of soul inside Ravenclaw's Diadem. Maybe they would even be able to keep the Diadem itself intact. That would be highly desirable, considering the value of the artefact.

Hermione was exhausted. She was spending all of her free time revising for finals, researching the history of Hufflepuff and the magical properties of Ravenclaw's Diadem. And she wasn't the only one drowning in schoolwork right now. Some students actually had the gall to use her precious consultations hours to ask for help with academic matters. She was there to help them with personal problems, not to give them private tuition!

And then there were the endless complaints. Hermione could live with people whining about schoolwork and how stressing the N.E.W.T.s would be—she felt the same—but some had no other problems than their own personal dramas while there was an open war raging outside the walls of Hogwarts.

On the first of March, Hermione pulled out the Daily Prophet from her satchel to read it over dinner. She had reread their first year Potions book for breakfast so the Prophet had had to wait for later that day.

Hermione skimmed an article that had drawn her interest with a headline she could only agree with:

 _Shouldn't Dumbledore be at Hogwarts?_

Apparently, the headmaster had been sighted entering and leaving Gringotts several times the last few weeks. It seemed he was doing business with the Goblins instead of taking care of the students—at least that was what the journalist concluded. Hermione wished for Dumbledore's presence in Hogwarts as well, because that would make her feel significantly more secure than the constant absence of the headmaster. To her great chagrin, her musings were interrupted by more of the whining she had been incredibly irked by lately.

"Yesterday, I let my powder drop, and it was all over the floor. No charm I tried could separate it from the dust under my bed. But the worst thing that day was when I combed my hair after the shower and literally half of it came loose. Just look how dry and flat it looks! I'm telling you: I'm cursed! It's the stress doing this to me. All the attacks in the Prophet, and they still expect us to learn for our N.E.W.T.s!"

Hermione sighed. "Lavender, really. How can you even deal with all this angst?" she asked sarcastically.

"Excuse me?" Lavender turned to her, eyes wide as if she couldn't quite believe what she had just heard.

Hermione should have let it go then, explain Lavender that she had a bad day and was easily irritated or something like that, but at the back of her mind a small voice soured her on, dared her to finally speak her mind. "No offence, but there are people here who lost relatives in this war, who fear for their siblings and parents' well-being every passing day; and you are here, whining about hair loss, because you are so stressed about this situation?" Hermione scoffed. "Don't be such a drama queen, and keep it real, will you?"

Lavender gaped at her like a fish, it was strangely satisfying and a rush of adrenaline shot through Hermione's veins. She felt superior that moment; her words had the power to elicit that kind of reaction in people. Parvati glared at Hermione, so she shrugged. "Really, someone had to bring her back down to earth. The world doesn't revolve around her."

Miffed, the two Gryffindor girls got up and sat down a few seats away from Hermione.

"What happened?" Harry asked, taking the now free seat next to her at the dinner table.

Hermione shrugged again and watched him load his plate with chicken wings, mashed potatoes and—at her stern glance—with a fractional amount of broccoli.

"You know, maybe we'll be able to find another one soon," he told her in a low voice. "Dumbledore wrote a very vague letter, saying that he is onto something but has to convince some Goblins to get to _it_. Can't tell me any details of course, that would be too risky unless it's in person."

Hermione nodded at him with a small smile. "That sounds good, Harry."

It was comforting to know that Dumbledore hadn't abandoned them to solve Harry's task on their own. His continued absence worried her greatly. He should be in Hogwarts, presenting the students a sign of stability, but Hermione could understand that there were more pressing matters at times like these.

Slowly, Hermione started eating, her eyes fixed on a point at the other end of the Hall. The world was getting darker around them; there was no denying it any longer. What would she give to once more see that sad little smile he had given her a few days ago? It hadn't been a reassuring smile that made false promises of salvation, but it had been a benevolent gesture that had been given freely, without repercussions, without ulterior motives. It had been honest. She searched for that smile now, but he didn't even look at her. Why should he?

"You are staring at him again," Harry remarked.

Hermione looked at him quizzically.

"It's okay, you know?" he said. "If you like him, I mean. You care about him—I can see that. He's good-looking as far as a bloke can judge; he's smart and charming when he wants to be, and you've spend a lot of time together this year." He shrugged. "No big deal. Don't worry about us."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked confused.

He looked at her for a long time. "Don't tell me you've got no clue?"

"What? Harry what do you mean? I can't follow you," she said exasperated.

"Okay, never mind." Harry quickly shovelled the mashed potatoes from his plate into his mouth to avoid answering further questions.

Hermione rolled her eyes at his antics. Sometimes, Harry acted strange. It must be the constant worry about the war meddling with his brain. Hermione could sympathise all too well.

"Where's Ron?" she asked.

"Oh, he's… busy."

"Busy doing what, Harry?" Hermione asked incredulously. "It's dinnertime! He'd never miss that."

"Well, what if he already had-uhm… _dinner_." Harry averted his eyes.

Hermione squinted her eyes, trying to decipher whatever his statement meant. "Is this some kind of weird sexual innuendo?"

Harry blushed to the roots of his hair. "No, it's not that! Just—"

Hermione sighed. "Don't tell me he already ate all of his birthday candy?"

Harry grinned sheepishly and shrugged. "Maybe not all of it, there's still some Puking Pastilles."

"Oh my." She blew up her cheeks. "When do you boys grow up?"

"You're not mad?"

She snorted. "I'm not your mum."

Harry grinned, waving a broccoli on his fork in front of her face. "You sure 'bout that?"

She glared at him, and he meekly ate the broccoli.

"Hermione?" Harry asked quietly. "I'm having those dreams again."

She quickly cast a glance around, but luckily no one was paying them a mind. "In those dreams where you are _him_ again?"

He nodded. "I think he's recruiting new Death Eaters. He seems nervous, says that someone must finally commit to his role as a Death Eater. I think something bad is about to happen, Hermione."

She frowned, shuffling on her seat uncomfortably. This was no good news, not at all. Hermione prayed that it didn't mean what she suspected it did. She threw another glance across the room at a certain blond Slytherin. "Harry, maybe they are just nightmares. We can't assume that every dream you have is a vision."

"I'm sure it isn't just dreams, Hermione. I can feel it."

"Have you tried talking to Ron about that?" Ron was the only one that could help Harry when he was having those dreams. He was there to wake Harry.

He pouted. "You know that Ron isn't exactly adept with this emotionally taxing stuff…"

"Well, I have my own stuff to deal with at the moment so how about dealing with this yourself for a change?" Hermione replied irritated and got up, leaving a stunned Harry behind.

He didn't know that she fully agreed with him that something bad was about to happen. Just not the way Harry thought. She had understood the implications of what he had seen immediately.

From that moment on, Hermione kept a very close eye on Malfoy.

* * *

The next day, Hermione was on her way to Herbology when she spotted her friends in front of the greenhouses with their heads together.

"Hey guys!" she joined them, smiling brightly.

"Hermione, looking good today," Ron smiled back. "What got your mood up?"

Really? They were talking about her mood now? Whatever they had to discuss privately apparently wasn't meant for her ears, Hermione observed, irritated.

"Nothing," she answered him, concealing much their secrecy irked her. "What's up with you guys? You look worried."

Harry sighed. "Flitwick handed me back my essay, said I will have the chance to rewrite it, otherwise I'll get a T."

"Oh, give it here, Harry. How bad can it be?"

"I'd rather not." Harry clutched his essay protectively.

"Come on, I'll have a look at it and add some advice where you can improve it."

"You sure?"

"I'm offering, am I not?"

"Thanks, Hermione. I appreciate that."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll give it back tonight if you two learn with me in the library."

"Alright, we'll be there," Harry groaned, elbowing Ron who already was looking for a way out of the situation.

"You need it," Hermione reminded them sternly.

"Yeah, we know, sometimes we just need you to kick our arses," Harry grinned.

* * *

After classes, Hermione set out to read Harry's essay in her common room only to be interrupted by Malfoy. It seemed to be one of his favourite things to do to her chagrin.

"Doing your boyfriend's homework again?" he mocked. "Is it Weasley's or Scarhead's this time?"

"Oh, shut it, Malfoy," she growled.

He didn't shut it. Hermione would bless the day when he would for _once_ leave her in peace.

"Granger, you'll have to do my consultations tomorrow."

"What? No!"

"We already agreed on that. I have Quidditch training because we had to switch with Ravenclaw."

"I never said I would do your consultations!"

"Well, there's no one else who can do them, is there? And I am not going to cancel the training now."

"You know what?" Fury was suddenly burning through her veins like a blasting fuse, her magic crackled dangerously in the air. "Fuck you!" Hermione growled. "Fuck this all, I don't care any longer. Do whatever you want, skive off your duties for all I care. I hope they expel you and lock you up in Azkaban."

To her irritation, Malfoy grinned mockingly at that. "I knew you'd snap sometime. Nobody can be wound up for so long."

Snap she did. "You know, I really cared about how you were doing; I even agreed to the stupid idea of looking out for you. I practically spied on you for at least three months just to make sure you didn't fuck up the only chance at redemption you got."

He frowned at her but didn't say anything.

"But I just realised that I really don't care," she packed up her stuff, chucking her books into her satchel and not caring for crinkling the pages of Harry's essay as she crammed it in between. "Snape can try to save your sorry arse himself," she said, not even caring to look at Malfoy. "You really don't deserve it."

"Interesting," he commented, intrigued at the carelessly given information. "I bet he'll be elated that you spilled the beans."

Hermione snorted. "He can shove it. I've got better things to waste my time with."

She left their common room and made her way to the library where Harry and Ron were already pouring over their homework.

"Harry, can you please tell me what was on your mind, when you wrote this piece of Troll dung?" Hermione let his essay drop on the table in front of him.

"It's really bad, isn't it?" he asked meekly.

Hermione just raised an eyebrow and took her books out.

"Yeah, right," Harry said. "I did it on a short notice because I had forgotten about it. Things are a mess right now," he sighed.

"Well, I hope you'll make use of your second chance." She wouldn't give into his pity party.

"What do you think I intend to do here," he pouted. Hermione hated when Harry talked back to her like that.

"Hermione, can you recommend a book on today's assignment? The one about Gillyweed?" Ron asked.

"You know what?" She snapped her book shut again without even having sit down. "I can't. Do your damn homework on your own, I refuse to be your doormat any longer, I'm more than just a dictionary!"

With that, she swiped up her stuff again rather dramatically, and left the library to continue learning in her own quarters. Why had she gone to the library anyways? With Harry and Ron there, she didn't even manage half the work she could do on her own. They needed to grow up and finally do their homework on their own.

Hermione holed herself up in her room, locked the door with every spell she knew and turned over her bag, the contents spilling on her bed. It was full of books and notes and among them was a curious wooden box. Lifting the lid, she peeked inside, marvelling at the ornate piece of jewellery. She hadn't been able to leave it behind in her room that day where it could have been found by the house-elves or in the worst case even Malfoy if he dared enter her room in her absence. The safest place for it, was with her at all times, Hermione had decided.

She was in no way vain or interested in adorning herself with jewels, but even so she had to admit that Ravenclaw's Diadem was beautiful. Briefly, she wondered how it would feel to wear it. She traced the famous quote etched into the metal, feeling the exciting brim of magic humming beneath her fingers. Then, without further thinking, she turned to her mirror and lifted the Diadem to her head.

* * *

Hermione had managed to trade the responsibility of overseeing the Hogsmeade weekend at the end of March with Malfoy in return for taking on his consultations earlier that month. It wasn't easy for her to let Malfoy carry all responsibility, but she needed to set an example so he wouldn't make this a regular occurrence.

Seizing the free time, Hermione and her friends decided to spend the afternoon together. Harry brought Ginny along and they made their way to the wizarding village. Reaching Hogwarts' gates, they spotted Neville heading the same direction.

"Oi, Neville! You wanna join us?" Ron called.

"Where are you headed?"

"Hog's Head. We want somewhere quieter than the usual hang-out spots."

"I'd love that." Neville smiled. "Man, I can't wait until holidays. We barely spend time together anymore."

"I wouldn't rely on there being more free time. Even if we will be free of classes, N.E.W.T.s are closer than ever, and we'll be buried in the library all day," Hermione reminded him.

"Aw, come on!" Ron groaned, and everyone laughed at him.

It was nice spending her time among friends. Hermione had missed the carefree chatter without having to think of the war for a change. They settled in the grimy pub that they had come to appreciate for being located more remotely and providing privacy.

"Feels like our old DA meetings, doesn't it?" Neville commented contently after they had ordered a round of drinks.

"We should definitely do this more often," Ron agreed.

Ginny scrunched up her nose. "I suppose we would, if McGonagall wouldn't cancel half the Hogsmeade weekends."

"It's for our safety. The precautions are too time-demanding to allow us more weekends outside the school grounds," Hermione reminded her.

"Yeah, I get that, but the least they could do is provide us with some compensation. You're Head Girl, why don't you talk to McGonagall, and tell her that we need a replacement at least. We can't stay locked up in that school the whole year!"

"I'm sorry if there are more important matters at hand," Hermione huffed.

"Now, now." Harry calmed them down. "We know how difficult the situation is."

"You can go whenever you want," Ginny complained. Hermione wanted to pull her ears off. When would people finally stop whining? "Just because you're one year older—what's the difference really? It's not fair…"

"That's why we didn't go without you," Harry reassured his girlfriend, earning a smile from Ginny who leaned in and pecked him on the cheek affectionately.

"Eww, guys!" Ron complained, and they laughed at his blatant disgust.

Suddenly, Harry jumped up from his seat, nearly knocking Ginny's Butterbeer from her hands and ran out the door.

They shared a puzzled glance before he returned. Behind him, Luna entered, beaming widely at the small gathering.

"How nice to see you relaxing in this adorable little pub."

Hermione wondered what exactly about the Hog's Head was 'adorable', but swallowed the comment that was on the tip of her tongue.

"I saw her passing by the window and thought Luna might want to join us," Harry explained. "I'm sorry about not asking you to come along earlier," he added to Luna with an apologetic expression.

"Oh, don't worry Harry. I'm used to being left behind." Luna smiled, sincerely.

An uncomfortable silence followed, and especially Harry seemed to feel really bad about forgetting Luna.

"Take a seat, Luna," Neville finally spoke up and awkwardly patted the empty seat to his right.

"What were you doing by yourself?"

"I was looking for Jobberknoll feathers. If you stir your tea with them, it helps you to concentrate so I thought that might be good for learning."

Hermione raised her eyebrows in scepticism, but made no comment.

"Harry, why don't we reintroduce Dumbledore's Army again?" Ginny suddenly asked. "We rarely have any Hogsmeade weekends anyway, and that would be a great way to meet with everyone."

Hermione shook her head. "Harry doesn't have time for that. It's our final year, we need to prepare for N.E.W.T.s!"

"But it's like revising, isn't it? He needs to revise all the spells anyway, that would be a nice extra."

"I think it would be far more effective to train with someone on the same level as him. Also, Defence isn't really the subject he needs to focus on." Hermione remarked. "Potions is far more important because he still needs to improve to become an Auror."

"Don't you think he can decide that on his own, Hermione?" Ginny stared Hermione challengingly in the eyes.

"I don't know? Can he, if you make decisions for him, manipulating him to waste his time on training younger students?" Hermione shot back, irritation growing inside her.

"Hermione." Harry tried to calm her.

"Oh, please!" She scoffed. "Don't tell me you are actually going to accommodate these demands?"

"I don't know. I need to think about it. But that's my decision, isn't it?"

"And what about your grades? Don't you want to become an Auror?"

"You know as well as I do, that I will never become an Auror!" Harry suddenly raised his voice.

Neville started at him wide eyed. "Why are you saying that, Harry? Don't give up on your dreams! I want to be a Herbologist, and I'll need to improve in Potions for that, too. I know I'm crap at it, but I won't give up."

"It's… complicated, Neville." Harry slumped. "I should probably let you in on this. You stood by me in the Department of Mysteries after all."

"I'm not sure that's what Dumbledore would approve of, Harry," Hermione reminded him, a slight warning in her voice to not spill his secrets too freely.

"What's wrong with you Hermione?" Ginny asked. "You're usually not so bitchy."

Harry winced while Luna nodded. "Hermione, I'm really worried about you. You are so different lately. Something has lodged itself in your head and makes you be this angry person that I don't recognise."

Hermione's eyebrows twitched in irritation. Why couldn't Luna keep her thoughts to herself like everybody else? How dare she tell her _that_ to her face?

Hermione told her off quite frankly. Usually, Luna was nice but that accusation was far out of line. Honestly, the Ravenclaw had gotten worse than Trelawney lately. Luna seemed pretty miffed that Hermione didn't take her crap. Ginny shot her a dark look, and Hermione definitely had had enough of this so she bade her friends goodbye quickly, mumbling something about having to go to Tomes and Scrolls.

She was just a few steps outside, when Harry caught up to her.

"Hermione are you alright?"

"Of course I'm _not_ alright! You are leaving us, you already accepted your fate! And you think we'll just accept it as well? If you really believed in us, you'd know that we can find a solution. You aren't just giving up on yourself, Harry. You are giving up on us as well."

She didn't wait for a reply, storming away as tears threatened to fall from her eyes.

* * *

On Monday, Harry asked her to stay behind after classes. Curiously, Ron was nowhere in sight, as if he had slipped out of the classroom right after the lesson had ended.

"Hermione, Ron and I discussed what we do with Ravenclaw's Diadem," Harry said quietly after the last student had left and he had cast a _Muffliato_ on the now closed classroom door for good measure.

"What?" Since when were Harry and Ron discussing anything without her? Hermione glowered. They had been excluding her for weeks now. "Did you decide that my opinion doesn't matter anymore?"

He frowned at her heated reaction, not puzzled but slightly worried. "No. We discussed it yesterday at night. I couldn't sleep so we talked about some stuff. It came up, and we made a decision. We weren't about to come down all the way after curfew to talk in your common room."

As if they hadn't talked about it before. Hermione wasn't a fool. More than once in the last few days they had stopped talking the moment she had joined them. When she addressed the matter, they had been awfully insistent about changing the topic as quickly as possible.

Hermione breathed in deeply and counted to three in her mind. She didn't want to get into a fret. He would just tell her to calm down and stop making a fuss. She really was stressed lately for something like this to affect her so much.

"We need to destroy it. We need to do it as soon as possible," Harry urged.

"What?" She couldn't help a shocked expression crossing her features. Hermione didn't like this sudden decision one bit. "Wait, this is a little unexpected. Are you sure you gave this enough thought? Wouldn't it be too much a risk to do it now? I'd say we need to find the others first and destroy them all at once, Harry," she said, trying to reason with him. Didn't he see that rushing things would do more damage than help? "What if _he_ notices? I'm sure by now it would affect _him_ greatly when we destroy them."

"Hermione, I'm certain he didn't notice anything when the locket was destroyed. I would have felt that."

"But this is totally different Harry! Dumbledore knew what he was doing. You said yourself that he won't be returning anytime soon, so what if we make a mistake?" Hermione felt panic rise in her throat as she grasped for straws to persuade Harry to rethink his decision.

"We considered that when making the decision," Harry replied with confidence. "It's worth it."

"Worth what? Worth losing this blasted war?!" They were so reckless! This sounded like another one of Harry's thoughtless plans that would end in total disaster. Hermione needed to prevent this at all costs!

"Hermione, the Diadem is dangerous. We can't risk it harming anyone."

She scoffed. "And who would it harm? It's in my room, locked away from the whole school. With all the spells I cast it's probably better protected than it was in the Room of Requirement before."

"It's not that far away from absolutely everyone."

"Of course it is! It… wait. Do you mean to tell me, that you believe it will harm _me_?"

He fidgeted. "You don't seem the same lately, Hermione. We are worried."

"Oh, I'm SORRY if my Head chores are a bit stressful, not to mention the upcoming exams—and don't tell me there's so much time until then, it's in only a few months!"

"It's not just that, Hermione. You lash out at people constantly, what you said to Luna–"

"Excuse me!" she shrieked. "I was just telling her what everybody is thinking anyhow!"

"No." Harry said calmly, holding her gaze. "I don't think she is barmy and should finally get over her mother's death and start being normal."

Hermione froze. What had he just said? No. She shook her head. "I didn't say that."

He looked at her sadly. "Yes, you did."

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 **Turning to flee, she only managed a few steps before she felt magical ropes coil around her ankles, causing her to trip and fall face forward onto the floor. Only a breath later, he was upon her and grabbed her wrists, pulling them behind her back. His knee pressed painfully into her spinal, and one of her arms was twisted as far as her shoulder joints would allow. Her cheek was raw from rubbing against the stubbly carpet.**

 **Hermione felt the tip of his wand press into her neck, and she started to panic earnestly. "I won't tell. Please, I won't tell anyone. I promise!" she begged, blood rushing through her ears like a flock of birds.**

 **::::::::::::**

 **The plot thickens :D We are reaching the third act of my story. The climax is close, just a few chapters maybe :O**

 **At what point did you realise that something was seriously wrong with Hermione?**

 _Many thanks to my lovely beta KSB and to Nora Fares for poking me every now and then to continue working on my stories and for making wonderful covers for all of them :'3 I could write a thousand stories just to get more of those beautiful covers 3_


	27. He's Caught

**Good news everyone! The story is written and I'll start publishing chapter by chapter as I edit. I won't promise any rythm because that depends on when I have time for it, but I won't take another break.  
**

 **I also want to advertise my NEW STORY a little ;) Threats and Treason CH1 is now uploaded. It's an adult Dramione story, post-war with loads of drama and politics. The best thing is, that I have fully written it and am currently editing so there will be regular updates and no year-long breaks lol**

 **Please check it out!**

 **::::::::::**

 **Here's a short recap of the last chapters of She is Clueless:**

 **Hermione Harry and Ron found the Diadem and Hermione hid it until they found a way to destroy it. She starts acting weirdly, is easily irritated and finally snaps at Luna. She feels that all her friends turn against her until Harry comes to her, telling her what she really said to Luna and Hermione starts to realise that the Diadem makes her a horrible person.**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:  
**

 _"It's not just that, Hermione. You lash out at people constantly, what you said to Luna–"_

 _"Excuse me!" she shrieked. "I was just telling her what everybody is thinking anyhow!"_

 _"No." Harry said calmly, holding her gaze. "I don't think she is barmy and should finally get over her mother's death and start being normal."_

 _Hermione froze. What had he just said? No. She shook her head. "I didn't say that."_

 _He looked at her sadly. "Yes, you did."_

* * *

"No, no that's—I wouldn't… no. Harry, why would I s-say something like that?" Unable to keep them at bay, fat tears leaked from Hermione's eyes as the horror of the words echoed back to her drenched her like cold ice water. "Ha-Harry, what have I done? Oh Merlin, what did I do?"

Her castle of glass shattered around her; self-righteousness collapsed into a heap of unbelieving devastation. What kind of a monster was she to say that to innocent, beautiful Luna, who was as fragile as a butterfly in early spring?

When her illusionary self-concept crumbled and dizziness overcame her, Harry pulled her to him.

"Don't worry Hermione," he soothed her. "We'll help you. We will end it tonight. Everything will be okay."

An inner demon in her chest screeched enraged, clawing at her burning lungs to get to freedom—to prevent Harry from whispering these traitorous plans into her ear. Hermione knew in that very moment that she was capable of truly awful things if she let herself go and succumb to the growing urge inside of her. Only years of discipline that she had forced on herself to reach her goals gave her the strength to lock away the raging beast that had been feasting on her insecurities for the last few weeks.

"You carry it with you, don`t you?" he asked. Harry knew more than he let on. He could be completely clueless sometimes, but he had seen right through her façade. "Give it to me, Hermione."

She slowly nodded and pulled at the straps of her bag. Harry kept his hand outstretched, not letting her become weak as she took out the little box and with began undoing her protection spells agonizing slowness. Her hands were trembling, cold sweat chilled her back.

"How are you going to do it?" Hermione whispered when the last spell was released and the lid sprung open.

Harry picked up the Diadem carefully. He wrapped it in a piece of cloth and hid it in his robes. "I'm not going to be the one to destroy it, Hermione. You will do it."

"You know I can't. It—it has more power over me than I realised, Harry. I'm afraid. I can't do it."

"I believe in you, Hermione. Come." He took her hand and pulled her along. It was getting late and the castle halls were empty. "Ron's already waiting."

Hermione wondered briefly where they were going. How were they going to destroy it safely? They couldn't just do it in the middle of the school. Someone could notice and it would definitely be dangerous.

She was weak, struggling with every step she took, every breath was difficult to take. Panic overwhelmed her, constricting her throat.

For a moment, she thought they were heading for the secret passage leading through the one-eyed witch to Hogsmeade, but then they took another turn and Hermione understood Harry's plan. She couldn't have come up with a better idea.

Ron was there, waiting for them at the bottom of the pipes leading to the Chamber of Secrets. Harry nodded to him, still holding Hermione's hand.

"Hermione." Ron sounded worried for her. He hugged her, lending her strength to keep standing upright. Every bone inside her was bent on running away, bent on fighting to death to keep them from destroying something too valuable to deprive the world of. Incredible knowledge would be lost forever if they really went through with their plan and destroyed the Diadem, but Ron's supporting presence reminded Hermione of what was really at stake here.

"We need to do it," Harry urged.

Ron nodded, letting go of her. "I've already got them." He carefully pulled three long fangs from his robe pockets.

"I thought it would be better to get more than one. Just in case," he explained.

They were really going to do it. Hermione stared at the Basilisk Fangs, her hands trembling and sweaty. She couldn't do this. She couldn't let them do this.

Harry put the Diadem on the dusty, debris covered ground.

Sudden anger flared up inside her. How dare he let dirt touch the Diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw? Hermione's fingers twitched as she unconsciously reached for her wand in her back pocket.

It wasn't there.

Like a deer caught in the headlight she looked at her friends. Her wand was in Ron's hand. He had taken her wand, had taken her legitimacy to be a witch. She growled angrily and lunged at him. She was a Muggle after all, she wasn't depending on a wand to defend herself.

Harry grabbed her wrists and looked at her seriously with a pained expression. She could tell that he didn't want to hurt her, but his grip was unrelenting against her struggles. "Hermione, remember why we need to do this. Remember who you are. It took that away from you. It destroyed you!"

The rage inside her wavered like a flame in the wind.

"Now _you_ need to destroy _it_ ," he said.

And then, like a blazing bushfire, her anger turned, turned against its own source, and it burned strongly. She stilled, summoning all her willpower to return Harry's gaze with fiery determination.

"I'm ready, Harry."

No one would ever take from her what she cherished most. Hermione would never let anything take what was sacred to her: her intellect, her compassion, her power. She was a witch—the brightest of her age—and no dark spell would change that. She wasn't letting herself be defeated.

Harry saw her determination in her eyes and nodded, slowly letting go of her. He took her hand and pressed one of the sharp teeth into her palm. She gave them a feral grin and with a swift motion rammed the Basilisk's Fang into the Diadem.

A load roar vibrated through Hermione's eardrums. Her teeth rattled with the magical force that overcame her like a storm, and she felt like the world had come apart around her, as if reality had dissolved and assembled itself anew.

As the magical onslaught slowly ebbed away, she felt a heavy burden lift from her shoulders, and her mind cleared as if she hadn't been fully awake for _weeks_. Only then, she felt how muddled her brain had been by the heavy fog of constant dread, strain and mistrust towards her peers.

Hermione wasn't sure if the evilness from Voldemort's soul or the ancient magic of the Diadem was responsible for manipulating her the last few weeks, but according to her findings on the heirloom, it could have caused this effect just as well as the dark magic that had been used on it. Maybe it wasn't as much of a loss for humankind as it had made her believe.

Hermione looked at her friends, who appeared just as speechless and overwhelmed as she felt.

Then Ron started to laugh, pure joy radiating from him as he picked her up and whirled her around. "We did it! Hermione you really did it!"

* * *

Still on the high of having destroyed the Horcrux, Hermione returned to the Head Common Room. She was equally exhausted and boosted with energy from the adrenaline rushing through her veins.

Maybe that was the reason why, when emerging from the Mirror Entrance, she didn't comprehend the scene in front of her immediately.

Malfoy was perched on the edge of the sofa in front of the fireplace, facing the flames that had a really odd shape.

"Yes, Aunt Bella," he said.

"Don't forget where your loyalties lie," hissed back a voice so icy that it chilled Hermione to the core of her chest.

The flames flared briefly, before dying down to a pile of embers.

Then, finally, Hermione understood what she had just witnessed. Unfortunately, that same moment, Malfoy noticed her presence.

He jumped up in a swift motion, and Hermione realized that she should have run, when he still hadn't seen her. She reached for her wand in her pocket, but Malfoy drew his much faster, disarming her and advancing on her.

Turning to flee, Hermione only managed a few steps before she felt magical ropes coil around her ankles, causing her to trip and fall face forward onto the floor. Only a breath later, Malfoy was upon her and grabbed her wrists, pulling them behind her back. His knee pressed painfully into her spinal, and one of her arms was twisted as far as her shoulder joints would allow. Her cheek scrapped against the stubbly carpet.

Hermione felt the tip of his wand press into her neck, and she started to panic earnestly. "I won't tell. Please, I won't tell anyone. I promise!" she begged, blood rushing through her ears like a flock of birds.

Malfoy didn't let go, and for a while, she could only listen to him breathing heavily above her, waiting for him to hex her. Finally, Hermione heard him heave a heavy sigh, and he moved off her. Hermione stayed on the ground for several seconds before she carefully turned around to not startle him again. Her wrists and shoulder were hurting from his iron grip.

Malfoy sat on the ground next to her, watching her carefully. His face was a cautious mask, and his wand was still pointed towards her as Hermione slowly sat up, never taking her eyes off him.

"You weren't meant to witness that," he remarked after a while.

"Really?!" she cried out, the tension within her breaking free. "What were you going to do? Kill me?! _Avada Kedavra_ and be done with the Mudblood?!" Hermione screeched hysterically.

"No…" Malfoy shook his head, frowning at the wand in his hands. "Just an _Obliviate_."

"Oh, what a relief!" she remarked drily. "Have you ever done that before? You are aware that there is a _reason_ why you need a special license to perform memory spells?!" The adrenaline was making Hermione bolder than she would have been otherwise, but the thought of ending up a drooling shell, void of all memories and incapable to recall more than a few minutes at time was truly horrifying.

"Careful!" Malfoy warned her and levelled his wand at her. He got up from the ground, looming over her. "Swear you won't tell anybody about this! On your magic!"

"I'd need my wand for that, wouldn't I?" she asked him and arched her eyebrows.

Malfoy didn't seem comfortable with handing back her wand at all. He just stared down at her for a minute, unmoving. Hermione sighed.

She was tired. The Diadem had been feeding on her strength for too long, and its destruction was still ringing heavily in her bones. "What do you want to do, Draco? Stand there all day until you've figured out how to get rid of me after all?"

He growled at her before he handed back her wand reluctantly without taking his off her.

Malfoy made her swear until every loophole was filled. Hermione had to keep from rolling her eyes repeatedly, when he still wasn't satisfied after the third time.

It was rather unpleasant as he used some kind of spell to make sure she wouldn't be able to break the vow. The Dark Magic he cast upon her caused her to shiver violently as it prickled through her veins, and they seemed to freeze up. Malfoy was clever enough to use her wand for those spells, well knowing that his was being tracked, and any use of dark magic would immediately alert the Ministry.

When he was finally content, they looked at each other uncomfortably for a while. Then her curiosity won over.

"What is worth the risk of getting caught talking to a wanted Death Eater?" she asked, tentatively.

He looked away into the still crackling embers. "Aunt Bella said he promised to liberate my father if I do him a little favour."

"A little favour? And what would that be? It never ends with just a little favour, does it?"

"Guess not." He pulled a face.

"So?" Hermione probed.

Malfoy frowned, "So what?"

"What is it? What does he demand of you?"

"Why would I tell you, Mudblood?" he sneered.

Hermione rolled her eyes again. Sometimes he was behaving like a petulant child. She really couldn't take him serious like that. "I already swore to keep my mouth shut, didn't I?" She shrugged. "But fine, it's not my business, I guess."

"You would only try to detain me." She had never seen Malfoy look so unsure of himself, torn between what he wanted to do and what he felt he needed to do. It was unsettling as he was one of the few persons Hermione had never seen questioning himself. He had always had so much confidence in his actions. Now he seemed lost and desperate.

"So you're really considering this offer? Do you realize that he wouldn't let go of you after that? You got away with your Mark, convincing the Wizengamot that it was forced on you, but you won't get away with actively working for him."

"Don't you think I know that?!" he exclaimed angrily. "It's not like you understand anything of this." Helpless panic clung to his words like sticky tar.

"You're right, I don't. But I know that Voldemort does not play fair." He winced at her use of his name. "And he will find a reason to not fulfil his part of the deal if it serves him."

"I know. But I have no choice, do I? It's about my fucking father! I can't leave him to rot in Azkaban if I have the chance of getting him out."

Hermione found no argument against that. She knew that she would probably have done the same.

She had no way of alerting anyone of Voldemort's plans. She was alone in this. Malfoy had made her swear to not tell anyone in every way possible, but he hadn't tried to keep her from doing something herself.

She couldn't let him join Voldemort's forces. Hermione didn't even want to think about the consequences of Malfoy switching sides completely. He knew a lot about the security measures they took as he had helped upholding them in his role as Head Boy.

Unwilling to acknowledge the threat he posed, she was still aware that it would mean failure on her side if he fulfilled Voldemort's task. Failure was not acceptable. It was no option for Hermione.

* * *

When she made her way to breakfast the next morning, Malfoy watched her every step. He seemed extremely paranoid about what she would do with the knowledge if his transgression. Hermione tried to ignore him but was constantly aware of his gaze.

It was a lazy Saturday, and most students had opted to sleep in on their first day of the Easter Holidays. Due to the current tense situation, no one was allowed to go home, and the teachers had made sure that no one had time to complain by loading them with homework to prepare everyone for the nearing exams.

Exams… nothing seemed farther away from reality for Hermione right now. Nothing seemed less trivial. The worries consuming her that morning were paralysing. She felt like a deer caught in the headlight of a terrific war that was rapidly approaching.

When Luna entered the Hall, Hermione fell out of her state of belated shock over the newest events that had rooted her motionless to her seat. The sight of the blonde girl skipping to the lonely end of the Ravenclaw table, reminded Hermione of unfinished business.

She waited until Luna had taken a seat by herself, separated from her housemates like she sat all too often. Timidly, Hermione got up and walked over, waiting for Luna to acknowledge her.

"Why don't you sit with me?" Luna asked, buttering her toast.

Hermione took a seat, aware of Malfoy's eyes boring into her back. What did he think she would do? Tell Luna and fall victim to the oath she had sworn? It hadn't been an unbreakable vow due to the lack of a third party casting one, but he had made sure that the effects would be just as bad. Hermione shuddered only thinking about what the dark magic would do to her, how it would fully consume her and tear her body apart if she overstepped the line. Malfoy had reminded her of that this morning again, making sure she understood the consequences of betraying him.

As Hermione stayed mute, Luna eyed her after a moment of silence.

"You are free now," she observed.

Hermione felt like bursting into tears as the bottled up shame threatened to break free. "Luna, I-I said something awful, I really didn't know where my head was then, but that is no excuse. I'm so sorry for what I said. I just—I'm sorry, Luna."

Her shoulders slumped. How could an apology so botched up ever condone what she had said a few days ago?

"Oh, it's alright Hermione. I know that wasn't you. I know that you don't think I'm barmy."

Hermione realised that she really didn't. Sure, Luna was… different. But she was probably the most perceptive person Hermione knew. She told Luna that, conjuring a wide smile on the Ravenclaw's face.

"I'm sorry that my words hurt you. I am very open about what I think, and people tend to be scared of that. I don't want you to be scared of me," Luna admitted.

Hermione took her hands and squeezed them, her heart aching for the younger girl confessing her fear. "I think people are actually afraid about what they could learn about themselves if they listened to you, Luna."

"Exactly!" She beamed.

* * *

After breakfast, Hermione excused herself from Luna and was about to head to the library. That was when Malfoy emerged from the Great Hall behind her and took her by her arm, dragging her with him down the stairs to their common room.

Hermione tried to pull her arm free, but he didn't even stop. "What are you doing, Malfoy? Let go!"

He ignored her and shoved her through the two-sided mirror into their common room.

"What did you tell Lovegood?" he demanded to know.

Hermione gaped at him. "None of your business!" she threw back at him, still struggling against his hold.

"I'll only ask one more time: What did you tell her? What did you talk about?!" He shook her forcefully.

"Let go, Malfoy." It scared her. What he was doing, dragging her through the halls, jostling her like some rag doll.

"Oh no, I'm not playing games any longer." He pulled his wand. " _Legilimens_."

 _No_. Hermione tried desperately to block him out. He couldn't know. It would be their doom. He couldn't know!

 _Sitting down next to Luna just a couple of minutes ago. Shame. So much shame. Back at the Hogs Head, Ginny with her fiery personality. Harry next to her—her Harry who was suffering so much. Hermione was so worried for him because of…_

 _Ginny calling her a bitch, looking at her challengingly. White anger burning in Hermione's throat._

 _Luna was there. Agreeing with Ginny, accusing Hermione, irritating her. And then those angry words that Hermione hadn't spoken herself. It had been something else, something dark simmering inside her. Something she had to get rid off, or else it would consume her completely._

 _But how could she let go? How could she fight against who she was? Because deep down, she knew that it was_ her _all along, that it had been there, buried underneath all those layers of perfectionism and ambition. But Harry was there, Harry would help her, he held her, gave her strength. And Ron was there as well, down in the… Ron who was waiting for them to kill it, to finally end this agony. He was prepared, knew to take her wand from her so she wouldn't attack them. And they spoke soft, encouraging words…_

It hurt, it hurt so much to keep him out. It threatened to shatter her mind. She cried, begging him to stop. "Don't. Please stop, Draco stop!" Hermione sobbed.

And he did. Her mind was finally calm again, the storm rummaging through her memories died down, and his hands held her upright as she threatened to lose balance. A buzzing dizziness overcame her, her skin feeling as if penetrated by thousand needles, and the world dissipated into a black and white pattern in front of her eyes that quickly became blurred with tears.

"Don't cry, Granger." His voice was soft, shaking with horror and strain. "Don't… I won't do it again, just stop crying."

Trembling, she fought against her tears, a dull ache spreading in her head. He rubbed her arms, to stop her from trembling or in comfort, Hermione didn't know. Maybe both.

When Hermione regained her footing again, she pushed Malfoy away. She couldn't stand looking at him. It disgusted her, she felt shame and anger and incredibly weak.

She left him standing there, holing herself up in her room, waiting for Crookshanks to return from his nightly stroll.

* * *

The rest of the day passed her like a silent shadow. It was as if Hermione was just a bystander, watching enormous cloud formations over Hogwarts' grounds change shapes constantly until the lush green of the trees started greying at the edges. She finished nearly half of her schoolwork that afternoon to keep her mind occupied.

Hermione didn't dare leaving her room, opening the door only briefly, when Crookshanks scratched at it and yowled to be let in. She didn't want to face Malfoy—half afraid she might hex him badly, half ashamed at how deeply he had violated her privacy. And there was the underlying dread of what could have been if he had done so a second longer. How close she had been to give in. It felt like a betrayal of Harry. She was too weak to protect his secrets.

* * *

On Sunday, Hermione woke up early and dressed herself quickly with the intention to escape the confines of the Head Dorms and breathe fresh spring air outside by the lake that mirrored the sun in crystalline sparkles. She donned her lighter cloak that was just thick enough to keep the morning breeze from chilling her and made to leave.

Annoyed, she noted that her doorknob was jammed, and she jolted it impatiently to get it to move. It still wouldn't budge. With hesitant dread, Hermione pulled out her wand and cast an _Alohomora_.

Nothing happened.

Not giving up, Hermione tried a detection spell and was confronted with a tight net of interwoven locking spells.

What in Merlin's name…

" _Malfoy_ ," she growled. How dare he! She angrily pounded against the unrelenting wood of her bedroom door.

"Let me out, you git!" Oh, he was in badly.

She grabbed her Joint Mirror and opened it with a little more force than necessary, making its hinges creak. Wild magic poured through her arm as she tapped the glass to bring it to life.

When his face appeared, he seemed very reluctant to answer her call. "I'm not letting you out, Granger."

"Malfoy, you'll open my door this instant. What do you think are you doing?"

"No. I don't trust you."

"What bad can I do?" she asked him exasperated. "I can't tell anyone, I swore an oath, remember?"

"You're smart. You'll find a way around it."

"So you want to keep me locked in here for what? A day? A week? They'll come for me at some point, you know?"

"You'll tell them you're ill."

"I won't lie to my friends!" she screeched.

"You will." He looked at her long and hard.

"And when am I going to eat? Are you going to let me starve to death in here?"

He sighed.

"Let me into the common room at least! You can't keep me up here all day, I'm going nuts!"

"Alright." He sighed again, looking more tired than Hermione had ever seen him.

 _Good_ , she thought resentfully.

He moved, carrying the mirror with him until he was on the other side of her door. He looked at her in the mirror. "Put your wand in front of the door and take a step back."

"What? No!" Hermione gripped her wand harder.

"Do you want out or not?"

She huffed and defiantly let her wand drop to the ground.

"Take a step back," he ordered her. She could hear his muffled voice through the door. "And show me the wand."

Hermione obeyed, turning the mirror so he could get a view of her room.

Malfoy took extraordinarily long to unlock the door. She wondered where he had learned such advanced locking spells—probably in his little Death Eater Club.

When the wooden door clicked open, he quickly summoned her wand.

Hermione's initial plan had been to just lunge at him to catch him by surprise and then get out as quickly as possible. But he had his wand carefully trained at her and his eyes told her that he was dead serious.

Hermione hugged herself. "So what now?" She feared that Malfoy was going insane. He certainly looked labile. Dark circles lay under his eyes, he looked strangely old and worn.

Uncertainly, he hovered at the threshold. "You can't leave, I can't risk it. You have to understand that. When your friends come to ask for you, you'll tell them you're ill."

"How long do you think this will work out for you, Draco? This is insanity!"

At her use of his first name his face shut down into a careful mask, not showing any emotion, all uncertainty locked behind the walls he had built around himself. "Just a few days. It's holidays anyways, no one will suspect anything."

* * *

 _I am immensly grateful for my longtime beta KoolStoryBro, she's been with me and this story since the beginning and has reassured me through all my insecurities that it's aesome and that I should never give it up!_

 _This story would also probably have ended up on the huge pile of unfinished stories if it hadn't been for Nora Fares. She's encouraged me writing and has always been ready to give plenty of feedback, discussing plot points and giving emotinal support :')_

 _I wouldn't know what I would do without you two!_


	28. She's Trapped

**Here's a quick update :) I hope you take it as an apology for making you all wait so long! D;**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:  
**

 _Uncertainly, he hovered at the threshold. "You can't leave, I can't risk it. You have to understand that. When your friends come to ask for you, you'll tell them you're ill."_

 _"How long do you think this will work out for you, Draco? This is insanity!"_

 _At her use of his first name his face shut down into a careful mask, not showing any emotion, all uncertainty locked behind the walls he had built around himself. "Just a few days. It's holidays anyways, no one will suspect anything."_

* * *

He kept her wand. Of course he did. She was allowed in the common room, but Malfoy was present at all times, watching her and snarling at her to sit down, when she couldn't stop pacing.

He scared her.

After some time, Malfoy locked her in her room again. At least he seemed to have a bad conscience.

"Can I get you some books from the library?" he asked.

Hermione responded by hurling one of her beloved books at him, but he quickly shut the door, and it fruitlessly bounced off the wooden surface onto the ground.

Hermione sunk to her knees, cradling the book to her chest like a crying child. She closed her eyes on the tears that threatened to fall, not acknowledging how powerless she felt.

Not only was she unable to get any help, she felt like she herself couldn't help Draco anymore. He was truly desperate and it was only a matter of time until he would go and mess up his only chance at redemption.

Later, he brought her some dinner that she refused to touch, even though her stomach had been growling since lunchtime.

* * *

In the morning, he woke her up by knocking on the door. Hermione didn't even care to get up, but turned her back to him when he opened it. Once she would have felt ashamed had he invaded her personal space like that, but with her anger towards him came a certain apathy.

She could make out the scraping of a plate he put on her desk and rustling. Furious that he was now going through her personal notes as well, she sat up, ready to tell him to get lost.

She froze when she realised that he had actually brought her an issue of the Prophet.

"Thanks," she mumbled quietly.

"You look like an owl got caught in your hair, Granger," he sneered.

Now self-conscious of her attire, she pulled her blankets up and patted down her hair. Before she could retort, he had left, locking her door again. Hermione sighed. She sat in her bed a few seconds, unmoving, until she flinched as her stomach surprised her with loud growling. Right, food.

She practically inhaled the toast he had brought and gulped down the pumpkin juice like it was her salvation. She took a quick but hot shower until her small bathroom was filled with steam, before she settled on her bed with the Prophet. It seemed thinner than usual. Puzzled, she browsed the already well-thumbed paper until she was absolutely sure. Something was missing. Had he really only handed her half of the paper?

Ignoring her vow to give him the silent treatment, Hermione grabbed her Joint Mirror, tapping its surface impatiently. After several seconds, he still hadn't answered and Hermione started to panic. What if something happened to her and she couldn't get help? What if something happened to _him_ and no one would know she was locked in here?

She paced, to calm her nerves. There was no use in getting all worked up over worst-case scenarios.

Then, she heard the tapping of steps outside. Relieved she knocked on the door. "Malfoy?"

The answer was a loud meow and Hermione leaned her forehead against the door in frustration. Crookshanks scratched the wood, begging for entry.

"Crooksie," Hermione cooed softly. "I'm sorry, I can't open the door."

A low mewl sounded, and then she heard him pitter-patter back down the stairs. Hermione sighed. A couple of minutes later, her door swung open to her surprise, revealing a very pissed looking Malfoy.

"Your cat is a bloody nuisance," he growled. "Wouldn't leave me alone."

Hermione silently cheered for her Crooksie, but instead, she waggled the incomplete Prophet in front of Malfoy's face. "Are you censoring the information I get from the outside world now?!"

Irritated, he shoved the paper aside. "Your friends are here."

Hermione practically did an excited jump and was about to pass by Malfoy, when he shoved his wand in her face.

"Not so fast, Granger. You're not leaving the common room, and you'll tell them that you're ill."

She snorted. "There is no way I'm-"

" _Imperio_."

Instantly, the world was enveloped in a haze, and her mind cleared.

 _Come_ , his voice sounded in her head.

She followed him downstairs. It was the sensible thing to do. He wanted her downstairs, so she followed.

At the edge of her cognition, she registered that he took a seat on the couch, his view towards the room. Watching her. It felt save that way with him watching over her. He'd always be there. Watching.

 _Let them inside._

Hermione said the password, and the mirror cleared, allowing Harry and Ron to step through.

"Hermione, you alright? Where were you yesterday?" Harry asked.

 _You are ill._

She pulled a face, looking as suffering as she could. "I think I caught the flu. I'm not feeling too well."

They looked at her worried. Why were they worried? Everything was alright, she was in good hands.

"Do you need anything? Something from Madam Pomfrey? We can get you some books or distract you a little."

 _You want to be left alone._

Alone, that would be nice. She'd like that. "No, I just need rest, thank you."

"You sure?" Ron asked.

"Yeah."

"Alright." Harry said, smiling at her. "Get well soon, Hermione. And don't let Malfoy grate on you."

 _Remind them to do their homework._

"Make sure you do your schoolwork!" she called after them as they left.

Then they were gone, and the fuzziness slowly faded from her senses. It was instantly replaced by irritation. "I wouldn't say that! Why did you make me boss them around?"

"Oh, you would, Granger." Malfoy laughed, getting up from his place on the couch.

"I wouldn't… why did you do that?" Hermione's anger turned to horror as her brain slowly caught up with what had just transpired. "You… oh _god_!" She dragged her hands down her face, leaning back against the wall by the entrance.

"Granger?" He came closer, reaching out to her.

"Don't touch me!"

He flinched.

"You bastard! You… what have I ever done to you? How did I deserve that, Draco?" She grasped onto Harry's necklace for comfort.

"It was necessary," was the only thing he said, still hovering a step in front of her.

Looking for a place to sit down, Hermione staggered over to the sofas, closing her eyes as she sunk into the cushions. Prickling exhaustion ran across her skin as she breathed shakily to calm her nerves.

She opened her eyes to the rustling of paper and noted that she was sitting on the part of the Daily Prophet Malfoy hadn't given her.

Automatically, she pulled it out and immediately got caught onto the main article.

A small "Oh" escaped her lips.

She noted that he had moved to stand behind her, shifting uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry, Draco," she choked out. She really was[LR1] .

* * *

He didn't lock her in her room that day. Brooding over his homework, he had an eye on her in the common room but left her alone.

When it got late, she retired. Despite not moving around much in the confines of their dorm, she was exhausted. The recent events had lead to her constant fatigue, but it had already claimed her sometime last year and had never quite let go since then. It simply lay dormant most of the time, waiting for a weak moment like this to resurface.

Still, Hermione was unable to get a full night of sleep. Eyes wide open, she listened to the tick-tock of her bedroom clock until she was completely on edge and threw off her covers.

Patting barefoot over the wooden floor, she tested her door and was surprised when it swung open.

She crept down the stairs, shivering as her feet made contact with the freezing stone steps.

Draco still sat in front of the burnt down fire, looking practically haunted. It seemed as if he hadn't closed an eye and just sat there the whole night.

She planted herself in front of him. "Feeling bad now? Good, because you deserve it." Her ire flared as he didn't respond, didn't even seem to acknowledge her. His eyes were mirroring the dying embers. Glassy and empty.

She wanted to hit him, scratch him, kick him, hurt him as bad as he had hurt her.

"Look at me, Malfoy," she hissed.

He glanced upwards, his gaze grazing her face, not lingering, but falling to the side like a bird being shot from the sky.

His hand suddenly rose to his face, wiping at something glistening down his cheek in the dim light. And then he shook, his body curling into itself, away from her, away from the world.

Hermione suddenly felt empty. Sitting back onto the low coffee table, she watched him cry in the dead of the night. "What am I going to do with you?" Hermione shook her head.

After a while, Malfoy looked at her, his face looking everything like the face of a boy who had just cried. It looked pitiful. His eyes looked tired. Dead.

"Come on, you look like hell." Hermione pulled him off the couch, shooed him upstairs into his bed and closed the curtains with a swish of her wand.

She'd have to make a trip to Madam Pomfrey, Hermione decided. Then it dawned on her. She was no longer locked up. She was free to go, free to escape this prison.

* * *

The corridors were drafty that night so Hermione swiftly walked up to the first floor. Madam Pomfrey, while obviously tired and irritated, gave her a dreamless sleep potion with strict instructions as to not overdose.

After thanking and promising the nurse to follow her instructions, Hermione made her way back. Despite now being free to go wherever she wanted to, she felt oddly compelled to not leave Draco on his own. He had invaded her mind, had locked her up; he had used an unforgivable on her and it frightened her to think about how much further he would be willing to go. She couldn't just leave him to do worse.

"Miss Granger. What are you doing out of bed at this time?"

She whirled around, finding herself face to face with Professor Snape. Gulping for breath, she tried to calm her stuttering heart. "Professor, I—I have trouble sleeping so I was getting something from Madam Pomfrey."

He assessed her as if contemplating whether he believed her or not. And for a second she was sure he knew everything, that he knew the sleeping potion wasn't for her, knew about what was troubling Draco and that he had locked her in her room these past few days.

"How is Draco?" Professor Snape asked as if reading her mind.

It threw Hermione off until she reminded herself, that he must have read the article in the Prophet as well. What should she tell him? That Draco was slowly going insane, forcing her to swear an oath, locking her up and using an Unforgivable on her to keep her from telling anyone that he planned to join Voldemort?

She opened her mouth, wishing to express just how bad Draco was doing, but the dark oath tied her tongue, causing her to nearly choke on it. "I don't know, Sir," she pressed out instead and swiftly moved on with a mumbled "Good night", leaving Professor Snape to stare after her.

* * *

When she returned, Draco was asleep. He seemed peaceful but the rapidly moving eyes underneath his eyelids told her otherwise. He was probably dreaming horrid scenarios about his task whatever it was and the consequences for his father if he failed.

She sat next to him on the bed gingerly to not disturb him. She watched him for a while, witnessing him twitch in his sleep. When he started groaning and rolling towards her onto his side, she gently stroked a loose blond strand from his eyes. They shot open and he sat up in a sudden motion, startling her greatly.

"It's just me, it's alright," she whispered. The panicked look in his eyes slowly faded and he blinked the sleep from his eyes. "I got you something for the nightmares." Hermione pulled out the potion. "Three drops, and don't use it for longer than five days."

"Where did you get that?" He frowned at the vial.

"Madam Pomfrey."

He sighed. "I should have locked your door again."

"I didn't do anything," she growled. "You could trust me at least a little, you know?"

He scoffed. "Why should I?"

"Because—" she interrupted herself. Turning her head, she tried to hide the blush that crept up her face. She sounded like a fool. "I'm here, am I not?"

"Yeah. And I really wonder why. What's it to you?"

She got up. It made her uncomfortable, how he wasn't uncomfortable at all, being in his pyjamas, being in such a vulnerable position. "You might be a git—" he chuckled. "But I feel bad for you, okay? You don't deserve this."

"So we're down to pity now?" He rubbed his face. "I really have sunken low to be pitied by a Mudblood."

She stiffened. Had they still not gotten over that word? After all that had happened? After all she knew about his troubles? After all her care?

"Oh, please." He had picked up on her distress, of course he had. He knew her far too well. "Don't tell me it suddenly hurts you, when I call you that? You know exactly what my opinion of you and your worthless Muggle parents is."

She stared at him. Long. Not blinking, until her eyes teared up. She quickly cast her gaze down.

"Oh, Granger. That's just sad."

She hugged herself. She couldn't go now. She couldn't leave him. There was no one else. Even Snape wasn't able to help Draco because she hadn't found a way to tell him. "Well, that's my problem, isn't it?" she said instead, her voice sounding strangely higher pitched than usual. She left then. Surely he could drink the sleeping draught without her aid.

* * *

The next morning, while he looked significantly better rested, Malfoy also was driven by restlessness.

"Can't you make a deal with the Wizengamot?" Hermione asked, watching him pace the length of their common room. "Give them information in return for your father's life! They won't set him free but maybe shorten his sentence or even place him somewhere more comfortable."

"Why would they do that?" he asked, his voice hopeless and assailed by doubts.

"Because they know that it's either that, or you'd choose more drastic measures, and they wouldn't be able to prevent it because they can't lock you up for something you haven't done yet," she reasoned out of her cuff.

"I bet they would anyway…" He looked so empty. Like he had nothing to hold onto anymore.

She got tired of his pacing and planted herself in front of him. "Then why not just give Voldemort what he demands?" Hermione didn't want to suggest that but she wanted to understand why he didn't act on it either.

He just laughed hollowly. "Now you just want to bait me."

He looked at her and suddenly raised his hand to stroke her cheek. She froze in place, clearly disturbed by his state of mind. He must be really be beside himself to be touching her in such a gentle manner.

"Don't worry. I can't leave this place without getting caught anyway, even if I wanted to. I wouldn't succeed."

He was attempting to comfort her! He was the one actually in need of solace and her stomach twisted painfully at this.

She grabbed his hand. "Is it… is it something bad? Do you have to kill someone?" Her voice was shaking.

He shook his head. "No, it's—I don't know. It's not and that frightens me."

"Listen, Draco. Whatever he wants from you, no good can come from it. Don't let this stupid article ruin your life."

"I know, but what choice do I have? It said he'll get the kiss in just four days…"

"Don't say that you have no choice! You don't owe this to anybody. Your father made his bed a long time ago and now he has to lie in it. This is about _your_ life as well."

"He's my father, you bitch," Draco suddenly hissed at her, his hand shooting out to grab her arm. "Death in Azkaban is a disgrace for a Malfoy. They spit on our name! I will not let them hand him over to the Dementors!"

"You are so bloody conceited!" Hermione snarled, wrenching her arm free. "Go ahead then! Do what he asks of you and watch the world go to waste. At least you'll be on the winning side then, right? At least you won't be among those that will be tortured and killed when he succeeds!" She lowered her voice to a growl. "Even if it means you'll have to watch him burn the world, even if you'll have to burn the world yourself – at least you saved your precious name, right? You are a damn coward, Draco."

He slumped onto the couch, and she stopped her rant then, breathing heavily. Hermione knew she had overstepped a line. She knew that it wasn't about his name or honour. She knew that he was hiding himself, his fears under the arrogance and façade of being a Malfoy.

She couldn't bring herself to apologising, though. She had meant every word of it, for the first time, she admitted to herself, that she knew he was beyond saving.

"I'm sure your father will be proud of you," she said calmly. Her voice was so cold it chilled her heart, but Hermione didn't feel that moment. "And don't worry, no one will be disappointed of you."

She wasn't disappointed.

"No one believed you'd do better anyways. No one will care."

She didn't care.

"Can I go?" she asked, her voice emotionless as she turned towards the mirror entrance. Hermione really wanted to go to the library and also tell her friends that she was alright. They still must be worried about her being ill. After three days, she should have at least gone to Madam Pomfrey.

He looked up and nodded. "Yeah, whatever." He rubbed his face in a poor attempt to hide how distraught he was. "Just go. Do what you want. Tell them if you want to." He laughed a mirthless laugh. "Please do. Just end this already."

* * *

Her friends didn't suspect anything. They played a few rounds Exploding Snap, and Hermione could forget about her worries for a while. The atmosphere in the Gryffindor Common Room was warm and fuzzy—a protected orb where time seemed to progress differently than outside. It was like a little house inside of a snow globe where nothing could disturb the peacefulness inside. It felt like childhood, and that left a bitter taste as the drafty castle halls instantly reminded Hermione of the cold world outside.

Upon her return to her own dorm, Draco was still sitting on the couch, staring into the murky water of the late with an empty gaze.

He looked up at her. "You'll be rid of me soon, Granger. I hope that makes you happy."

"How's that?" she asked, puzzled. The anger had faded, but still the indifference lingered. She refused to hold responsibility for him any longer.

"My report… The Floo call will raise questions if I can't offer the Ministry an explanation. I have to send it tomorrow."

"I'm sure you'll come up with something," Hermione said, trying not to care. It was hard to suppress the reflex of offering encouraging words.

"Like what?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, a distraction maybe?"

"A distraction…" And then he didn't seem to register her presence anymore, as he got up, mumbling and rummaging for parchment and a quill.

Hermione wondered what Draco would write in his report for the Ministry. Floo calls were registered and one from an unknown source would draw their attention—especially if he didn't report it.

She eyed him scribbling down a draft, crossing out passages and rewriting them. Shaking her head, Hermione went to her rooms and plopped onto her bed. She tried to reevaluate what had happened that day, but her mind was blank as she stared at the ceiling.

Somehow, it was hard to think about the Unforgivable Draco had used on her. It had violated her so deeply that she felt ashamed for being so helpless. Not for a second had she tried to shake it off. She felt weak.

Hermione had been on the verge of throwing all her bundled up emotion back at him, calling him out for the asshole he was, but it was easier condemning him for crimes he had yet to commit than crimes he had already committed against her.

He had humiliated her, violated her. It stung like barbed wire coiling around her lungs. It hurt so badly.

* * *

When she descended the stairs to their common room early the next morning, Hermione was surprised to find him waiting for her to sign his report. She skimmed it while Draco tapped his foot impatiently.

There it was: the Floo call.

 _7:35 pm – 7:45 pm incoming Floo call from unknown location, Albertus Malfoy (second cousin once removed)_

 _Topic of conversation: upcoming family celebrations (Betrothal of distant relatives in France)_

That seemed… rather fitting for pureblood high society. Also, this was boring enough to not arouse any unwanted questions.

"Granger, I just need you to sign it, no need to proofread," Draco said impatiently.

Hermione nodded. Her eyes skipped to the bottom of the page to sign the report, when something else caught her eye.

"Do you really want to report this?" she asked, shocked. She looked up at him, forgetting for a moment, that she shouldn't care any longer.

He grumbled his confirmation.

"I mean, why would you—"

"Not your business," he interrupted her.

Hermione scrutinised him closely. Something about this didn't ring right with her. Why would Draco rat out his best friend willingly?

"Is this even _true_? I never thought Nott would be involved."

He avoided her gaze.

Hermione's eyes widened with understanding. "It isn't, is it? You made it up. I can't believe you would—that's despicable!"

"I said it's none of your fucking business, Granger! They know something is happening, and they need to be convinced that I'm on their side, okay?" he shouted, more agitated than she had ever seen him. For a second it seemed as if he actually cared about what she thought of him. Hermione shook her head, quickly dispelling that notion.

"So you betray your best friend? Isn't there anybody else that you could rat out to divert suspicion from yourself?"

"No one as convincing," he admitted, sagging back against the couch. "They know how close we are."

"You really want them to believe you're turning against _him_ , do you?" She shook her head. "But to go such lengths…"

"Do I have any choice?! I really don't care for moral integrity now, Granger. Think what you want of me, but keep it to yourself. I'm a Slytherin, have you already forgotten about that? No one expects me to do any better, that's what you said yourself, wasn't it?"

She frowned, not liking to be reminded of her little outbreak the other day. "It doesn't define who you are, Draco. It's up to you what choices you make."

He laughed hollowly. "Don't be so naïve, Hermione. Choice is an illusion." She shivered at his bitterness just as much as she shivered at his use of her first name. She wished he wouldn't use it, it felt personal and she didn't want to think about the implications.

Reluctantly, Hermione handed him the signed report and watched him leave for his room.

Hermione was relieved that Draco didn't deem it necessary to lock her in her room anymore. Instead, he seemed to not care at all as if he was asking for her to find a way to stop him doing whatever he was about to do.

She was nervous after signing the report he had written. What would the Ministry do with the information? This promised only misery. Shaking her head, Hermione told herself to stop caring.

* * *

When five Aurors stormed the Great Hall in the middle of breakfast the next day, Hermione wasn't surprised but still shocked that Draco had actually gone through with his plan. She watched with cautious curiosity. She didn't care, but she really wanted to know what Draco expected to get out of this.

The Aurors had drawn their wands, and they ignored the teachers' protests as they headed straight for Slytherin Table, where Draco was sitting ramrod straight, his face an unhealthy shade of white.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 _The Auror leaned forward, looming over her, "So I ask again: What nature is your relationship?"_

 _"I—I'm his Head Girl," she repeated, uncertain._

 _"Miss Granger, I understand that you would want keep a relationship secret, considering what houses you belong to, but it is of utmost importance that you are honest. Are you or were you involved romantically?"_

 **::::::::::**

 **Hope you forgive me for my break D;**

 **Thank yout to my betas Nora Fares and KSB!**


	29. He's Gone

**Previously:  
**

 _The Aurors had drawn their wands, and they ignored the teachers' protests as they headed straight for Slytherin Table, where Draco was sitting ramrod straight, his face an unhealthy shade of white._

* * *

"Theodore Nott," the first Auror in deep purple robes boomed.

Hermione didn't know who looked worse: Draco, holding onto his cup as if he wanted to break it, or Nott, whose face changed from confusion to outright horror.

"I've been sent to inform you that you are now under arrest for association and aiding of known criminals in the kidnapping case of Dorothy MacDougal by offering personal information obtained through your affiliation with Draco Lucius Malfoy and his relationship with her sister Isobel MacDougal."

"Excuse me." Professor Snape strode swiftly towards the Aurors who were proceeding to actually chain poor Theodore, who hadn't moved the slightest in his shock. "Would you mind enlightening me of the situation?"

"Please stand back, Sir," the Auror ordered, using polite words, but his tone was anything but polite.

The whole school gaped. Nobody had ever spoken in such a dismissive manner to Professor Snape's face.

"He will not be taken out of Hogwarts!" Professor McGonagall's voice boomed from the entrance of the Great Hall. "Would you mind to inform me on the audacity that takes place here? As the current deputy of Hogwarts, I demand—"

"Ma'am, we have our orders. Unless Dumbledore himself—"

"PROFESSOR Dumbledore," McGonagall interrupted him in a commanding tone, "is currently not in Hogwarts, and therefore I'm in charge as official deputy Headmistress."

The Auror ignored her and roughly pulled Theodore from his seat. "Get up, boy."

Shocked into stasis, Hermione watched as several teachers, lead by Professor McGonagall, followed the Aurors dragging Nott outside. Their voices still echoed in the Hall after they had exited. No one dared speaking a word until the noise faded completely.

For a split second, her eyes caught Draco's, and there was anguish in them. Hermione felt the angry urge to throw something at him. This was his doing, he really had not an ounce of decency left in him. Hermione actually hadn't believed he'd sent the report. Nothing could have prepared her for this.

* * *

Unexpectedly, Professor McGonagall returned after only a short while, effectively quieting the mass of gossiping students by calling the Head Students as well as Prefects to the front. "I managed to convince the Aurors to not take Mr Nott to London for now," she informed them. "Therefore, there will be some officials in Hogwarts. I have to ask you to take over responsibility. As there are no classes, you need to make sure everybody stays in line and returns into their common rooms after breakfast."

She dismissed the Prefects, asking Hermione and Draco to stay behind.

"Mr Malfoy, I'm afraid you are too involved in this, so I must ask you to stay in your common room and be available at all times." Draco nodded, not meeting their professor's eyes.

"Miss Granger, as Head Girl I think you should be there to advocate for the student in question."

"Of course, Professor," she said, but secretly she wondered if Theo would even accept her defending him. He had made his opinion of her quite clear on several occasions.

Hermione caught Draco's gaze one last time before she followed Professor McGonagall. There was something troubling in his expression. Behind his indifferent mask there was anguish at having betrayed his best friend, but below that anguish there was something different, and for a moment Hermione was sure she saw cold calculation shining in his eyes.

Professor McGonagall accompanied Hermione to the Headmaster's office where two of the Aurors were waiting with Nott and Professor Snape. Hermione was appalled to see that Theo was shackled to a chair, his gaze cast down and his face frozen in an expression of angry resignation. They treated him like a monster that needed to be restrained when he hadn't even protested his arrest. Theodore Nott, who was usually either railing or whining every time he opened his mouth, was now sitting mutely in front of them.

"Miss Granger here is our Head Girl and she will advocate for Mr Nott as she is a representative of the student body," Professor McGonagall declared.

"Miss Granger." The Auror in purple robes nodded at her in acknowledgement. "Take a seat." He indicated towards a chair next to Theo. Hermione would have much rather kept standing as the Auror in question made no move to settle down himself and now towered over her. "What do you know about the accusation that Mr Nott has his hands in the abduction of Dorothy MacDougal?"

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think he was in any way involved."

"Is that so? What is your relation to Mr Nott?" he asked.

"I am Head Girl and therefore responsible for the students. They come to me if they are in trouble, and I make sure they stay in line whenever the teachers are not present."

"And what are your _personal_ relations to Mr Nott?" he asked leaning forward as if talking to a child.

"We don't have any personal relation. He is in Slytherin and therefore Mr Malfoy would be the Head Student in question he would turn to."

"How would you describe the relationship between Mr Malfoy and Mr Nott?"

She shrugged, feeling uncomfortable in her position. "They are friends, I suppose. I see them often together in classes and in the Head's Common Room."

"I understand that you and Mr Malfoy work together as Head Students." Hermione nodded. "So you meet him as well as Mr Nott quite frequently."

"I s—suppose." Hermione didn't quite understand where this was leading. She thought this questioning was about Theo and not about her.

"So I ask again: what is your relationship to Theodore Nott?"

"I—I'm his Head Girl," she repeated, uncertain.

"Miss Granger, I understand that you would want keep a relationship secret, considering what houses you belong to, but it is of utmost importance that you are honest. Are you or were you involved romantically with Theodore Nott?"

Hermione spluttered, her cheeks glowing red. Theo, who usually would have openly enjoyed such a situation and gloat at her discomfort, didn't move, his eyes cast down to his still bound wrists.

"Miss Granger is not the one who is here to be questioned!" Professor McGonagall interrupted the Auror outraged.

That moment, the other three Aurors entered. Their leader dismissed Professor McGonagall with a filthy look and turned to his men in expectation. "Nothing, boss. We combed the whole dorm and their common room. There is no evidence of his involvement."

The Auror in purple nodded. "He must have destroyed all evidence."

"Gentlemen," Professor McGonagall spoke in a commanding tone. "If you have nothing to validate your claim on Mr Nott, I must ask you to set him free at once!"

"Ma'am, I understand that you are concerned for one of your students but this is a serious matter. We have a testimony disclosing his involvement in the MacDougal case and as he is not willing to offer any information, we will need to search his memories."

"How can he offer information," Professor Snape finally spoke up, "when he is innocent?"

"No one asked your opinion on how to do our job, Snape," the Auror in purple hissed.

Professor Snape raised a brow, unimpressed. "I remember well how you are doing your job, Robards. And it is always wise to remind you how to do it properly."

"Severus," Professor McGonagall said softly. "Enough."

Robards shot Professor Snape a feral grin. "If you would leave the room now? We'd like to not drag this longer than necessary."

"I will not leave one of my students—"

"Severus," Professor McGonagall said again, putting a hand on his arm. "I will stay, Robards. This is not up for discussion." The stern glance she shot him, made Hermione wonder if she had been his teacher once. He nodded reluctantly.

Hermione was dismissed and sent back to her common room. She felt bad for Theo who still sat shackled to the chair, his shoulders slumped in defeat. Not once did he meet her eyes as if he couldn't stand the shame of the situation his friend had put him in.

Hermione couldn't quite fathom why Draco had sold out his best friend with such a badly constructed lie. It was as if he had wanted for it to be debunked in no time. Theo's memories would confirm that he was innocent. The whole trouble only brought Theo unwanted attention and misery. So why had Draco done it? What good did it do for him to have the Ministry focusing on Theo?

And then it struck her: He had done it to avert the attention elsewhere. She started to jog and then to full out run back to their common room.

It was empty.

Desperation settled in as she turned to his door and banged on it, calling for him to open up. When there was no response, she rummaged through her own room until she found her Joint Mirror and impatiently tapped the surface of the glass, but only the image of herself stared back at her when he didn't respond to her call.

 _Oh, Draco_ , she thought. This was not good at all; she wanted to cry from despair.

Hermione knew she had to report him; she had to let Professor McGonagall know. She rushed back the way she had just come. Her legs felt heavy, but she didn't allow herself to slow down.

To her surprise, the stairwell to the Headmaster Office was open and the door ajar. It was empty. Hermione entered, her heavy breath echoing unnaturally loud in the deserted room. Even the instruments usually tickling and chinking were silent for once.

"Miss Granger."

She turned, surprised to find Professor Dumbledore standing in the door as if he had appeared from thin air. His expression was grim, and he seemed to know exactly why she was there. "Where is Mr Malfoy?"

She shook her head. "He's gone, Professor." She wanted to say more, to tell him everything she knew, but her oath burned her throat. Professor Dumbledore seemed to know nevertheless. He nodded at her sadly.

"Then we can only hope."

"What did he do, Sir?"

"I'm afraid he went to Gringotts to retrieve something from a vault I have been unable to enter the last few months. Only someone related to the Black Family was allowed according to the Goblins, and we sadly don't have Sirius among us any longer."

Draco had fetched something from the Black Vaults? Was that his task? His lunatic aunt couldn't very well just march down Diagon Alley so she had been unable to enter the vaults, Hermione realised. And Narcissa was under house arrest and couldn't so much as lift a finger. But what had been so important to move it out of Professor Dumbledore's grasp?

Cold dread gripped her frightful heart at Professor Dumbledore's worried Expression.

"Albus?" Professor McGonagall came up the stairs to the Headmaster Office, looking older than ever before. "Lucius Malfoy has escaped Azkaban in a raid not ten minutes ago."

So Draco had fulfilled his task. Hermione shuddered.

Professor McGonagall then registered Hermione's presence. "Miss Granger. I think it is best if you were to go back to Gryffindor Common Room. I'm sure you'll be able to help out a little there and keep everyone calm and collected.

Hermione nodded. "What about Theo?" she asked, glancing at Albus Dumbledore who had moved further into the room.

"Minerva, I have to make a visit to Gringotts and see if what I have been trying to access is still there. I'll be back as soon as I can." With that, Professor Dumbledore threw a pinch of Floo powder into the flames and vanished.

Professor McGonagall stared at the flaring flames for a moment before seemingly pulling herself back to the present and turning to Hermione. "Mr Nott has been released for now. They didn't find anything suspicious in his memories. But due to the circumstances, Aurors will remain here at Hogwarts and have a close eye on everything."

Hermione nodded. "I'll make sure everyone is in their common rooms," she promised.

Professor McGonagall agreed and released her with a wave of her hand.

On her way to the dungeons, Hermione already came across two Aurors patrolling the halls as if Hogwarts had turned into a prison. They watched her closely, but dismissed her with a glance at her Head Girl Badge.

The Slytherin Common Room was in upheaval. Hermione's presence certainly earned her some dirty looks. She wasn't welcome there, not even as Head Girl. Slytherin had always been Draco's responsibility.

Hermione took aside her Prefects. "Sadie, I'm here on behalf of our Head Boy to make sure everyone is in their common rooms. Did you count the students?"

Sadie nodded. "Everyone is present."

"Alright. If anything happens, I give you permission to seek out a teacher or myself."

"How long are they going to lock us up down here?" Hanley asked.

"I don't know," Hermione answered. "Don't worry, I'm sure they have our safety in mind."

"Bullshit! They're keeping us under control. Malfoy fucked up, didn't he?" Some Slytherins agreed, grumbling.

"Draco has left the castle," Hermione conceded. "I'm sorry, I can't tell you more. I'm just as clueless as the rest of us."

"As if you give a flying fuck about us! We're Slytherins! Nobody cares about us!"

"Shut the hell up, Hanley," Sadie growled.

Hermione swallowed. She understood how much truth lay in his words. This wasn't just the usually show of defiance that Hanley was known for. This was concern and frustration turned into anger.

She felt helpless because she know that she couldn't assure them that everything would turn out alright. She didn't know anything. The Aurors certainly were biased against Slytherins and who knew how quickly things could turn southwards from here on.

Nodding towards Sadie, Hermione assured herself that they would be all right before she left.

"Granger," Nott caught her just outside the Slytherin Common Room. "I don't like you," he said seriously.

She scoffed. "You don't even know me."

"I know you well enough. I know you want your friends to work harder to improve their grades, but secretly, you like that you're better than them. You're afraid of failure and strive to be perfect so no one can claim you're not a proper witch and you think Draco doesn't really believe you're beneath him or that your blood is dirty. I assure you he does and that won't change, no matter how long you make puppy eyes at him."

She scowled, she didn't like his line of thought one bit. "What's the point of this, Nott?"

"I'm just reminding you why I can't stand you, because I'm going to help you, and I don't want you to think I suddenly changed my mind about you and joined the little Gryffindor fan club."[LR3]

"Why would you help us?" she asked sceptical.

"Because you want to help Draco, and he's my friend."

"He betrayed you."

"He's my friend," he repeated, his expression grim. Nott had not forgotten, what Draco had done, but he was determined, whatever his plan was. Hermione was surprised to witness such loyalty. She hadn't expected that from a Slytherin.

That didn't mean that she trusted him. He could be a Death Eater just like Draco was. Whatever he wanted to do, it certainly didn't have Hermione's safety in mind. This could be a trap.

Hermione eyed him, trying to calculate his next move. "What are you trying to archive by antagonising me, Nott?"

He shrugged. "I'm just trying to convince you that I'm honest about this, and that what I am going to ask of you is not to set you up."

"Alright," Hermione decided. "What are we going to do?"

Nott grinned. "Visit Malfoy Manor."

"Wait, what?"

"That's where he is now, at least that's where the Dark Lord is."

"How do you—"

"I'm his friend," Nott stressed. "And we don't have time for your silly questions. We go there, get Draco out, and your little group of friends can finally do what Potter always wanted to do and die in an epic battle."

She frowned. "Why should I trust you?"

"I'm not… one of them, okay? The Aurors would know after rummaging through my brain."

"And how do you suppose we get out with Aurors everywhere?"

Nott shrugged. "Potter is quite good at sneaking around, isn't he? The only problem is that the secret passages out of the castle are all locked."

Hermione contemplated that, mentally listing all secret passages she knew. A slow grin curled her lips.

"No, there is one outside on the grounds! We just need to get beyond the wards, right?"

He nodded.

"Good, I'll meet you here in half an hour to get you out with Harry's invisibility cloak."

Nott sneered. "Keep your Gryffindor gadgets, I can disillusion myself. Where are we meeting?"

Hermione was perplexed for a second. Disillusionment wasn't taught in their classes, and it was definitely not an easy charm. "Alright... erm, outside at the Whomping Willow."

He raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment.

Hermione watched Nott disillusion himself with fascination. It was like a bucket of water was dumped on his head, just that the water made his features swim and then fade into the colours of the wall behind him.

"You forgot your right shoulder," Hermione pointed out.

She heard him curse and mutter the charm again.

"Good?" his disembodied voice asked.

"Good," she said, unable to locate him any longer. Only the tiniest blurr in the air indicated that something was off.

"Oh, and Granger, bring some spare. We'll need every helping hand."

She nodded into his general direction, feeling stupid talking to someone that wasn't visible. Then she hurried upwards to Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

If the Slytherin Common Room had been as mess, Gryffindor was even worse.

As soon as Hermione entered, they were bombarding her with questions, hungry for the latest gossip. She had to revert to threatening taking house points to get them off her back so she could finally wade through the students towards her friends.

"Harry, we—"

"Hermione, _He_ knows!" He interrupted her, quickly pulling her into a corner and casting a _Muffliato_. "I just had a… one of those visions. He knows that we have been hunting the Horcruxes, and now he has gathered the remaining ones. He just got the last one."

Hermione swallowed. "I suppose I knew."

"You knew?"

"Dra—Malfoy is missing," she relayed.

"Wha—"

"Harry, please don't ask. I can't tell you more; I don't know everything, and I can't answer your questions," she said with an urgency that shut him up. "But I need you now, Harry."

"What are you talking about? We don't have time to waste, Hermione. We need to find Voldemort and destroy those Horcruxes before they are out of our reach forever. He keeps them with him for now. _I saw it_ ," he stressed.

"Alright." Hermione put her hands on his shoulders to calm him down. "I know where Voldemort is. And we will go there."

"You know?"

"Not said… he knows where Voldemort is."

Harry paused. "What does Nott have to do with this?"

"It's about Draco," she blurted out. He was about to say something, his eyes widened, trying to understand what she had just told him. Hermione beat him to it. "Harry, listen please. I—I need to help him, Harry, I can't leave him there. I just… I can't."

"What are you talking about, Hermione?" There was something dark in his tone, something confused and angry and worried.

"It's Draco. Voldemort is at Malfoy Manor, and Draco must be there as well."

"Malfoy, huh?" Harry's expression turned cold and distanced.

Hermione felt desperate. How could she explain him? She cursed the oath that prevented her from telling him everything so he would understand.

"Please don't ask," she whispered.

Harry looked at her long and hard, but then he exhaled, and his eyes turned soft. "You owe me an explanation after."

"After," she agreed.

They pushed through the crowd towards Ron who had been trying to calm down the first years, for once taking his Prefect duty seriously.

"You told her everything?" he asked, and Harry nodded.

"Listen, we need to get out to the Whomping Willow." She quickly let Ron in on their plan, skipping over the details and shaking her head when he opened his mouth to ask the most obvious question. "We don't have time now, Ron. I can explain afterwards, but now we need to get out of here."

He looked at her hard, then his eyes flitted to Harry and back to her. He nodded slowly.

"Let me get my cloak," Harry said.

"Don't forget the fangs!" Hermione called after him.

He disappeared to his dorm, drawing some looks from the gathered Gryffindors.

"Potter is up to something again," Seamus muttered. "What would he need bloody fangs for?"

"Whatever you are planning, I'm coming with you," Neville said, pushing his shoulders back and puffing his chest.

"Can I come as well? It's getting rather stuffy in here," a small voice said, and Hermione turned around to find Luna standing behind her.

"Yeah, Luna and I are coming as well," Ginny pushed forward and took stance next to the Ravenclaw.

"Luna, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked puzzled.

She shrugged. "I somehow got caught up in the wrong common room, and now they won't let me go to Ravenclaw tower."

Hermione sighed. "We can't keep you away anyhow, can we?"

Ginny grinned cheekily and shook her head. Nott had said that they'd need as many people as possible so Hermione didn't argue.

When Harry returned with his cloak under his arm, he looked rather unhappy at the small group that was waiting for him. Ginny's resolute stance seemed to rankle him especially, but he recognised the urgency of the situation and kept his mouth shut.

Three at a time they snuck out of the castle under the invisibility cloak until Harry came at last to fetch Hermione.

It had only taken them about ten minutes to get everyone else outside because the stairs between the portrait of the Toothless Werewolf and the tapestry of the Sneezing Sea Serpent had been unpatrolled by the Aurors so far.

Harry and Hermione slipped through the upper entrance, nearly avoiding two of the Aurors in the corridor and made their way down the stairs quietly. They didn't dare remove the cloak, which proved to be a lot safer, when two figures emerged at the lower end.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 _"You really had to bring Potter, didn't you?" A voice sounded from behind them._

 _They whirled around. Draco stood there, a frown on his face. "Bloody hell, Theo."_

 **::::::::::**

 **We are getting closer to the final battle! Hope you are excited :)**

 **Thanks to my betas Nora and KSB!**


	30. They are Caught

**We reached the final stages of this story :) The next few chapters will be full of action and drama!**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 _Harry and Hermione slipped through the upper entrance, nearly avoiding two of the Aurors in the corridor and made their way down the stairs quietly. They didn't dare remove the cloak, which proved to be a lot safer, when two figures emerged at the lower end._

* * *

Hermione and Harry held their breath. They were already halfway down, and it was too late to turn back without being noticed.

She pulled Harry to the side where they stood pressed against the wall.

There was no way they would remain unnoticed, the stairwell was too narrow for three people next to each other, and the Aurors would definitely bump into them.

Hermione's heart pumped wildly.

Harry suddenly reached forward and clutched at the fabric. The rip that Dobby had mended didn't hold well, Hermione realised. There was a fine gap that could give them away easily, if the Aurors looked closely. But still, there was no way they would go unnoticed as soon as they passed them.

"I haven't been here in ages, still feels like home," the left Auror said.

Hermione pulled out her wand, ready to stun them quickly, when she felt Harry moving next to her again.

Just five steps away, one of the Aurors stopped with a groan.

"Darn, wait a sec."

The other turned around, having now reached their step. "Not again, Archibald! Can't you tie your laces right for once?"

"Let me just…" he bent down to retie his shoe laces, while the other Auror heaved an annoyed sigh and moved on past them. Hermione mentally congratulated Harry on his resourcefulness.

"Wait for a moment, will you?" Archibald called after his colleague, stuffing the ends of his laces inside his shoes and hurrying after the other man, nearly brushing against Hermione as he passed them.

Then they disappeared behind the painting of the Toothless Werewolf and Hermione breathed with relief.

„That was close," Harry muttered and pulled her along until they had made it outside safely.

The others were waiting in front of the entrance and they snuck along the edge of the forbidden forest to stay hidden from the view from the castle that was bathed in the light of the late sun.

They reached the Whomping Willow quickly and Hermione turned about, looking for Nott.

"That took you quite long" came his voice from her left, sounding annoyed.

"There you are." She watched as the Disillusionment Charm he had cast on himself slowly wore off. It was pretty impressive, but not as good as Harry's Invisibility Cloak.

Harry eyed him with distrust.

"And you brought a bunch of kids?" He critically eyed Luna and Ginny.

"Ginny and Luna are only a year below us and just as capable as the rest of us."

"Yeah, probably just as capable as Longbottom."

"Don't worry about us, Nott." Harry waved a small gold coin. "As soon as we've left, I'll contact the Order, and they won't waste time to come and find us."

"What do you plan to do with that? Rent an owl?"

"It's charmed," Hermione explained, recognising the fake Galleons they had used with the DA. Fred and George still had theirs, and they were in close contact with Headquarters. They would undoubtedly inform them the moment they saw the message.

"Then let's get going." Nott didn't dwell on long explanations and pushed his chin forward. "Where is this secret passage you bragged about?"

Hermione procured a long stick from the ground and poked the knob at the bottom of the Whooping Willow. "Let's go," she said, as soon as it froze, and they climbed down the tunnel towards the Shrieking Shack. Nott clearly seemed disgusted with the state of the place, and Hermione shivered thinking of poor Sirius having lived there for so long.

"We're outside the wards now," Hermione said.

Nott let them take hold of his hand and apparated them to a lonely country road leading up a slope.

At the top of the hill in front of them throned a Victorian mansion that looked practically haunted in the light of the setting sun. Its windows were dark and empty like dead eyes. The gardens that must have once been thriving looked like all life had been sucked out of them. Dark magic hung palpable over the estate that was enclosed by an iron fence.

It was tranquil, haunting.

"Follow me," Nott said quietly. "I know a way inside.

They left the path and drew closer to the estate from the east.

"What's the plan?" Neville whispered when they reached a part of the fence that shimmered strangely. Nott took a deep breath and stepped right through it as if it was just mist.

He indicated them to follow him from the other side.

When Hermione took a brave step forwards, half expecting ancient blood-wards shredding her body, she felt a cool sensation, and breathing became impossible for a moment. It was like stepping through a wall of cold water without getting wet.

"We have to find Draco." Nott said as everyone had stepped through the illusion.

Harry shook his head. "We have to find the Horcruxes."

"The what?"

"A Horcrux is an object that contains a piece of your soul so you become immortal," Luna said to everyone's' surprise.

"Right." Harry nodded, eyeing her with a strange expression. "There are two left. One is his snake and the other is… well I don't know." He looked at Hermione for help.

"The other thing is whatever Draco fetched from Gringotts. That's why we need to find him first," she supplied.

Nott seemed to relax a little, assured that they would first find his friend to reach their own goal.

"Alright," Harry said. "We find Malfoy, and then we search for the Horcrux. I already contacted Fred and George so hopefully the Order will be here soon to create a distraction."

"Someone needs stay back then to show them the way inside," Ron remarked.

"I can wait here," Neville said, looking at the looming mansion nervously which earned him a filthy glance from Nott.

Harry didn't hesitate, "Ginny, Luna, you'll wait here for the Order to arrive as well. If anything dangerous happens, don't look back. I want you to run and get out of here as quickly as possible."

"But—"

" _Please_ , Ginny." The urgency in his voice shut her up, and she quickly leaned in to peck him on the lips.

"Don't you dare not coming back for me, Harry Potter." She pushed something in his pocket. "From Fred and George," she whispered.

He smiled at her. "I love you, Gin."

Her lips echoed his words silently as they tore apart.

Hermione felt hollow when she turned away from them. Her life seemed so empty and without any sense; it was void of a connection like the one her two friends shared.

As their small group drew closer to the mansion, she wondered if it really had been such a good idea to break into Malfoy Manor. She carefully watched the dark windows for movement behind.

It was eerily quiet.

Nott led them around, leaving the main entrance behind while carefully avoiding the windows, until they reached the back gardens where withered rose bushes stretched for miles.

"How do we get in?" Hermione whispered.

"There's another entrance," Nott explained.

They proceeded until they reached a narrow servant door. Nott murmured a spell and did a strange wand movement that Hermione didn't recognise, and the door swung open.

The scuttered inside, climbing a worn out set of stairs to the first floor. A narrow hall stretching both sides with even narrower doors greeted them. There were no windows, but light filtered through several holes and cracks in the walls, dancing among dust particles in the air around them. Hermione felt like Alice in wonderland, dropped into a dark hole, where the whole world was out of proportion.

"You really had to bring Potter, didn't you?" A voice sounded from behind them.

They whirled around. Draco stood there, a frown on his face. "Bloody hell, Theo."

"Fuck you too, Draco."

"Where is he, Malfoy?" Harry interrupted them. "Where is Voldemort."

"Merlin do you want to die so desperately, Potter?" He rolled his eyes. "Get out of my house!"

Harry rolled his jaw and Hermione sensed that he was close to lunging at Draco.

His gaze landed on her. "You shouldn't have come."

Hermione wanted to argue, but Nott beat her to it. "We don't have time for this, come Draco," he said impatiently. "Let Potter do his thing, and we get out of here."

He looked torn, a boy, not yet a man on the verge of making decisions no adult could do for him. "I-I can't."

"You bloody can. I didn't come barging in here like an effin Gryffindor just to leave you behind."

He pointed his wand at Draco. "You either come with us voluntarily or I'll make you."

"Nott!" Hermione was shocked. What was he intending to do? He couldn't very well _Imperius_ his friend.

It didn't come to that however. Hermione sensed that something was awfully wrong when Harry drew a sharp breath next to her and quickly drew his wand.

"Who do we have here?" A gleeful voice whispered. Hermione whirled around.

In one of the doors stood none other than Bellatrix Lestrange, looking at them as if she had just received an early Christmas present from her Lord himself.

"Our Draco has visitors! I didn't know we were sending out invitations. No need taking the back door, you were very welcome at the main entrance!"

Draco took a step back from them, his mouth in a thin line. Hermione wanted to curse him in that moment. He was a bloody coward! Why couldn't he stand for what was right just once?

But then his aunt giggled in a way so unsettling childlike, that it cascaded down Hermione's back like ice-water, and she wished she had never put a foot in this mansion.

"Come here, my children! Aunt Bella will take good care of you." She opened her arms wide, her wand held loosely in her hand.

Hermione wanted nothing but run. This was like an awful dream where you were glued to the ground, unable to move a finger while your mind screamed at her to finally bolt.

In the corner of her eye, she saw Harry pull something from his pocket and then she didn't see anything at all.

"Run!" she heard Harry shout, his voice strangely clear in the pitch black darkness enveloping them.

Someone grabbed her arm and pulled her backwards, away from where Bellatrix was standing and screaming furiously.

The dark witch cried out a few hexes that hit with exploding force, causing splinters and debris hailing down on them.

Hermione stumbled as she hit her shin on something that sent a sharp pain flashing through her leg, but she was pulled along through a door, unseeing.

The darkness was all-encompassing—it was clear that it wasn't natural. Hermione was pretty sure that she hadn't gone blind and her brain quickly jumped to the conclusion that Harry had used the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder Ginny had given him.

The person yanking her by her arm suddenly turned and Hermione realised that she was slowly starting to see shapes again. The powder was fading and the sight cleared like a doomed fog rising.

She was suddenly pushed into a cupboard. The noise died down as if the returning light had switched off all sound.

A ray of light broke through the doors of the strangely large and empty cupboard. She turned her head to find herself in a secret room, just big enough for two people to comfortable stand in. Hermione caught a glance of Nott's head of locks and realised that he had pulled her to safety. Gratitude rinsed the disorientation from her system and she gave him a small smile that he accepted with a nod.

"You can run all you want, but I'll find you," they heard Bellatrix call out. "Let's play a little game, shall we?"

Hermione shivered.

"Get Greyback, Draco. Now," she ordered. "He'll sniff them out in no time."

"Yes, Aunt Bella."

Hermione glanced at Nott. He looked horrified, he looked hurt, he looked like he had expected Draco to turn on them. The disappointment was written over his face, but bitterness drew around the corners of his mouth and betrayed the lack of faith he had had in his friend. She realised that he had been prepared to give everything for Draco, that he was ready to suffer and die for his friend. He had sacrificed all of them for the tiny chance of being able to convince Draco to come with them.

Why had he dragged them into this when he hadn't expected Draco to accept their help in the first place? What good did their presence do other than making him more vulnerable? They would be the reason he'd be killed in the end. He had marked himself a traitor to the Death Eaters by leading them to their hiding place.

"If that isn't the Potter brat. I am sorry to tell you that your invisibility cloak isn't hiding you as well as you'd like to. Did you tear it, itty bitty Potter?" There was a groan and a thud of knees hitting the wooden floor.

Harry! They had Harry. Hermione wanted to worm herself out of their narrow hiding place, but Nott caught her around the waist and dragged her back.

She twisted in his hold, trying to catch his eyes to signal that they would be doomed without Harry, that they needed to help him. He just shook his head and pushed her back against the wall.

"You don't get to play hero now and bust our hiding place," he whispered so close to her ear, that she could feel his breath on the side of her face.

She wanted to reject (?), but when she opened her mouth, he covered it with his hand, shooting her a glare to shut her up.

"Where is your little Mudblood, Potter? Eh?" Bellatrix asked. Hermione shuddered.

"Tell me!" she heard the woman screech and then she heard a different cry, one that she didn't understand at first, that she couldn't place, but that nonetheless chilled her bones.

She felt Nott's hold on her arms where he pinned her to the wall tighten. And then Hermione understood where that strangled cry was coming from.

It was Harry! Bellatrix was torturing Harry!

Hermione bucked to throw Nott off, but he was far to strong for her.

"Harry!" she heard Ron cry outside. "You fucking bitch!"

Something shattered and Bellatrix cackled. Harry's cries of pain ceased and all that Hermione could hear was heavy breathing for a moment.

"Weasleys' have always been a thorn in my side. Why don't you come closer, little ginger boy, so I can get rid of you properly."

There was a series of crashes from hexes hitting windows and furniture and then something heavy collapsed to the ground.

Hermione gave a sudden sob, the noise muffled by Nott's hand. Ron! What would Bellatrix do to Ron?

"Weasleys disgust me," Hermione heard Bellatrix mutter. "Say goodbye. You're never going to see your swineherd of a family again."

There was a whimper, Hermione wasn't sure if it came from her or from Ron, everything spun around her, everything was so _wrong_. This wasn't how it was supposed to be!

"Aunt Bella." Draco was back. Hermione wanted to cry out to him. _Do something!_ She wanted to shout. _Please, Draco. Please!_

"Ahh, I see you've been hunting for me, Bella." That wasn't Draco. The voice was deep and Hermione felt Nott going rigid, still holding her to the wall.

"Fenrir, be a good lapdog and find the rest for me, will you?" Bellatrix said. There was disgust in her voice and her command was harsh.

"You mean those hiding in the cupboard? I can hear you, my little lambs. I can _smell_ you. Your hearts flutter, you reek of fear. Did you really think, you could hide from me?"

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 _Hermione whimpered again, trembling like a leaf. No, no, no, no. This couldn't be right! This couldn't be how it ended!_

 **::::::::::**

 **What do you think? Leave a review!**

 **Thank you Noori and KSB for beta-reading! :3**

 **Little info: I'm currently writing on a new story as well as publishing a new one. If you like to read about more adult versions of Draco and Hermione, check out Threats and Treason!**

 **I can't tell yet when the other story will come, I have about half of it written so I might be able to start publishing once TaT is done :) Updates on all my mulit-chapter stories profile!**


	31. They Kill

**Warning: this story contains graphic descriptions of death and murder from here on.**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 _"Fenrir, be a good lapdog and find the rest for me, will you?" Bellatrix said. There was disgust in her voice and her command was harsh._

 _"You mean those hiding in the cupboard? I can hear you, my little lambs. I can_ smell _you. Your hearts flutter, you reek of fear. Did you really think, you could hide from me?"_

* * *

Hermione whimpered again, trembling like a leaf. No, no, no, no. This couldn't be right! This couldn't be how it ended!

Heavy steps closed in on their hiding spot. Hermione could hear him breathing, could practically feel the presence of the werewolf. She squeezed her eyes together when she heard a scratching sound against the door, nails running down the wood.

"Stop fooling around. We'll take them all to our Lord. He doesn't like to wait," Bellatrix snapped.

Greyback huffed, Hermione could practically hear his breath bounce off the door that swung open seconds later.

"How sweet. Two lovers hiding together," the man whispered, looking down on them. He turned halfway towards Bellatrix. "Can I have the Mudblood? It's Potter's girl, right? I'm sure she's not worthy of standing in front of our Lord." He grinned and it looked more like a wolf flashing his teeth than a human being.

Horror chilled Hermione's throat at the thought of what this man wanted to do to them.

Arms shaking, Hermione raised her wand. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Draco standing by the door where he had re-entered with Greyback. He was still, so very still, like a statue of Medusa, frozen in the moment of greatest fear.

"She's unworthy, that's true," Bellatrix sneered. "Your pack can have her. Potter is the only one who matters anyways."

Hermione cowered into the cupboard, but nothing could hide her from the gleeful eyes of Fenrir Greyback.

His arm shot forward, knocking her wand from her hand and grabbing Nott by the arm. Greyback pulled him very close. "Your father will be so disappointed, Theodore. Maybe he'll even disown you so I can have you as well." Theo struggled in his hold, but was powerless against the wolf-man. Greyback's eyes shifted to Hermione as she scrambled for her wand.

"L-Let him go." Her voice faltered when his heavy boot came down upon her wand, just inches from squashing her fingers.

Greyback flashed his teeth and violently flung Theo aside so he crashed into the wall and slid down on it.

Hermione's lungs fluttered, and she was unable to inhale any more with her last breath still stuck in her throat. She grabbed for her wand that had rolled from under Greyback's foot and shot a stunner that would have knocked anyone over at such a close distance, but Greyback didn't even flinch when it hit his chest.

Werewolves were less vulnerable to most spells, but Greyback didn't even seem to feel hers hit him.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang outside and everyone in the room froze for a moment. Then there was a bigger bang right inside the house and the walls shook with the ferocity of hexes.

Before Bellatrix or Greyback could act, half the wall of the hall was shattered and splinters shot through the air.

A flash of grey robes lunged at Greyback and pulled him away from Hermione.

From the hole in the wall stepped none other than Tonks and Kingsley, but Hermione couldn't drag her eyes from Remus Lupin fighting Greyback in hand-to-hand combat. It was as if he had completely forgotten about his wand.

Hermione had never seen a fight so fierce. Greyback was considerably larger than Remus, but her former teacher was quick and agile, evading most of the punches Greyback threw and going straight for the throat.

"You think you can defeat me, pup? You're one of us. I own you!"

Remus didn't reply to the taunts, his whole being focused on dodging and dancing around the bigger man.

He managed to land a hit straight on Greyback's nose and the man groaned, faltering for a second.

Remus used the leverage to jump him with a feral growl and dragged him down with him. They stood at the verge for a second and then Greyback misstepped and the tumbled down the stairs. Neither seemed to give up however as they could still be heard from upstairs.

Bellatrix now found herself faced by two Aurors shooting hex after hex. Hermione was shocked to see that they didn't hesitate to use deadly curses and Bellatrix herself seemed surprised by that fact. She made a show of causing a minor explosion that gave her room to turn and run.

"Wotcher, Harry. You alright there?"

Harry pushed off the ground, looking a little shaken, but bravely nodded.

"That was right on time." His throat was raw from screaming, but he tried hard to hide the tremors still shooting through his limbs.

"I need you kids to go back to the secret entrance and get out of here," Tonks said seriously. "Shit is about to hit the Whomping Willow."

"We came to fight," Harry retorted decidedly.

"I won't leave without Draco." Nott barged in, pushing himself up from the ground where Greyback had flung him.

Only then Hermione noticed Draco lying where he had stood before. He had been pretty close to the part of the wall that had been torn away and must have been hit.

She suppressed the urge to make sure he was okay.

"I'll take care of my cousin, Nott," Tonks replied. "We don't want you here."

Nott glared. "I won't compromise your mission."

She ignored him and pushed them towards the exit. "At least get out of the house now before they come back with more people."

/

"We need to get back to the others," Harry said, worriedly looking back at the house where flashes lit the night. The Order seemed to have an effective ambush tactic as they had managed to enter the house and surprise the Death Eaters, but when a series of explosions shook the ground floor, Hermione saw several people fleeing through the windows to escape the counter-attacks.

Nott was reluctantly following them. He hadn't liked leaving his friend behind at all. Hermione resolutely had pushed her worries aside. She didn't have time to think about Draco now. Her friends were in danger and she didn't care about Draco one bit. He had left them to be killed. He would have watched his aunt and Greyback torture and murder them. He had betrayed her and it hurt. She didn't care about him any longer. She didn't.

A scream tore Hermione's gaze away from the fight in the mansion towards where they were heading and she followed Harry who had broken into a run.

"Ginny!" he called, and Hermione felt like ice water was running down her throat when she realised that Ginny had been the one screaming.

They reached the fence. The sight was horrifying: A massive snake was wrapped around Luna's legs, it's head raised high, ready to strike.

Hermione immediately pulled her wand, but could only helplessly watch Neville trying to pull off the giant snake from Luna, unable to get a good aim at the beast.

"Neville, the head!" Ginny cried out, but Neville reacted too late as its fangs tore into his throat.

"Neville, Neville!" Luna cried, kicking at the snake and managing to pull herself free as it was occupied with Neville.

Its wire body convulsed and wrapped around Neville in a deadly embrace.

Neville gave a gurgling scream, his mouth overflowing with blood, his hands helplessly tearing at the snake still biting down on his throat. Harry cast a hex and another, but they ineffectively bounced off the scales of the beast. He resorted to pulling at its body that was slowly embracing its prey completely.

"Harry stay away from it!" Hermione cried when the snake suddenly let go of Neville and reared its' head around to snap at Harry instead.

He shot another curse at it and then resorted to poking the snake in its eye that seemed to mildly irritate it as it let go of Neville completely to pursue Harry. Steel skin glided over the dead grass, advancing rapidly as Harry was crawling backward.

Hermione pulled him away and cast a fire and ice spell in rapid succession at the beast, hoping that the temperature change would scare it off, but it didn't even flinch and advanced on them, head raised high, sharp teeth exposed.

It hissed and then snapped forward, aiming at Harry's neck.

"Not Harry!" Ginny cried and threw herself between them and the snake.

It didn't hesitate and bit down on Ginny's shoulder instead.

Falling out of his state of shock, Ron suddenly jumped forward and lunged at the snake. Something black flashed through the air and then the snake curled and convulsed, letting go of Ginny. She sank to the grass, her shoulder bleeding heavily.

Harry caught her before she hit the ground.

"Die you bloody beast!" Ron screamed as he rammed what looked like a knife into the jerking body of the snake again and again. Hermione realised, that he wasn't clutching a knife but a Basilisk fang.

He rammed the tooth into the snake's head. It caused a wicked grating sound and then the snake's body started to smolder. Black blood bubbled from where Ron had struck. It didn't seem to stop flowing. It seemed as if the body itself was dissolving into black blood until only a pool of blackness was left that quickly clotted and dried, turning to mere dust under Ron's hands.

"Ginny, breathe. It's going to be okay. It will be okay," Harry whispered, holding her body up and desperately trying to still the blood flow. Her eyes were glued to him, wide open as if blinking meant she'd never see him again.

Her mouth was a pale line, her whole face drained of blood.

Hermione fell to her knees beside them and cast a spell to halt the blood flow but it kept pouring and just like the snake, the wound seemed unaffected by magic. She tried spell after spell, tears streaming down her face.

"Do something, Hermione," Harry said in a panic. "Do something!"

"I'm trying," she sobbed, shrugging out of her cardigan to push the fabric on the wound.

Ginny hissed, but her eyes didn't leave Harry.

"Help me, we need to carry her off the property so we can apparate her to St. Mungo's."

"I'll bring her there," Ron said, cradling his sister in his arms and easily lifting her up.

He didn't even wait for them to follow, just stepped through the illusion of bars and disappeared.

"Neville," Harry breathed. He turned back. "We need to get him to St. Mungo's as well!"

Luna was kneeing at Neville's side, her hands holding one of his.

"He's dead, Harry." Her voice wasn't any different from usual. Calm, small, airy. But there was a tremor that pervaded her whole body down to her hands holding his.

Nott stepped closer, "We don't have time for this. You still need to defeat him, right?"

"You bastard!" Harry screamed, lunging at him.

Nott sidestepped. "I'm not going to throw myself at the Dark Lord's snake," Nott hissed. If you Gryffindors are too stupid to know when to stay back, that's not my fault!"

Hermione halted. "That was…"

"Nagini, yes," Harry confirmed, glaring at Nott. "You're a bloody coward, he could have lived!"

"No." Nott looked down at Neville. His face was ashen, his eyes still wide open and his throat was torn, blood clotted at the seams, his insides grotesquely laid open. Luna sobbed. "And I'm not responsible for the people you brought with you, Potter. This isn't my fault," he jerked his head at Neville. "This is yours.

"How dare you…!" Harry raged.

"I didn't fucking invite all my friends to join me on an obvious kamikaze mission!" Nott shouted back. "This is on you and you alone!"

"I want to stay with him," Luna whispered and at once both boys shut up. "They are coming, but I want to stay with him."

"We need to get you both away from here," Harry decided, looking back on Neville and Luna. "Can you apparate?"

Luna nodded.

"Good. I want you to go to St. Mungo's. Take… take Neville with you." His last words were whispered.

Luna nodded again and shakily rose to her feet. She pulled her wand and cast a levitation charm on Neville.

They watched her disappear on the other side of the fence. Nott turned away, leaving them for a bit of privacy. Hermione silently thanked him for being considerate enough to realise that Harry needed some space.

"That was a Horcrux, the snake, wasn't it?" Hermione asked.

Harry nodded. "Only one left to go."

"One."

"Then there's only me and him."

"And you'll have to die…" Her voice broke.

"I'm ready Hermione."

"What about Ginny?" She felt bad, really bad about bringing it up. She knew he had made his decision and yet she was unable to let him go, unable to keep herself from trying to hold him back.

"I'm-I'm not sure if I can-can still hope," he admitted. His hands were shaking. "She's probably dead by now."

"Don't say that," Hermione took his hands, unable to keep a few tears from escaping. "She'll be alright and waiting for you."

He shook his head. "She knew what she did. She sacrificed herself. Like Neville did." His lip trembled. "She told me that she didn't want to live in a world where I was dead. She knew what she did."

Hermione pulled him close. She held him and let him cry. She pressed her eyes shut, wishing them far away to a peaceful place and held onto him tighter as he sobbed into her embrace.

"We need to get away from here," Nott said, disrupting them.

Hermione's gaze shot up towards the house. She drew a sharp breath. At least a dozen cloaked figures had emerged from the mansion and though there seemed to be several Order members shooting hexes at them, it didn't halt their approach.

"They are coming close," Nott warned, and a second later, he had to deflect the first spell that was shot in their direction.

"They are coming for me," Harry said. He sounded determined, but exhausted.

Hermione reached out and squeezed his hand and when he squeezed hers back, she felt his pain, felt his rage, his devastation. And she felt that he had no choice but harden and will up himself because right now there were bigger things he needed to take care of. Bigger than them, bigger than Harry. Bigger than Neville. Harry's face was drawn, showing that he knew he wasn't granted the time to regret, to mourn.

He pulled his wand.

"Let's go."

"Get Potter!" Bellatrix screamed, leading the hoard of cloaked figures that was rapidly advancing.

Some hadn't even bothered to mask their faces.

Hermione cast a protective shield covering the three of them. "We stand no chance against that many. We need to get back inside the house somehow, we are an open target here."

"The cloak, Potter," Nott said, strengthening her shield with an addition of his own as more curses were send their way."

"We don't fit under it, I'm afraid. It's ripped and barely covers one person anymore."

"Not for us, for you. Get the fuck out of here, it's you they want."

"I admire your sudden nobility, Nott, but I'm not going to leave Hermione behind."

Nott groaned. "Stop being so bloody thick-headed and go already!" Once you are gone, they won't be interested in us any longer. We just killed the Dark Lord's pet snake, he'll want revenge for that. You will pay in one way or another, but hopefully, they'll rather chase your invisible self than us."

Harry didn't look convinced. "Hermione…"

"He's right, Harry. Go! We still need to get Draco, he'll know where it is I hope."

Harry slowly nodded and then pulled his cloak over his head. "I'll use the remaining darkness powder. It doesn't work well outsides but it should give you a few seconds to get away."

Hermione nodded in the direction where she supposed Harry was, flinching as a strong curse hit her shield and caused it to vibrate strongly. It wouldn't hold much longer.

"Now!" she heard Harry and then everything was dark.

Nott pulled her along, his steps with much more purpose and confidence as hers as she stumbled behind him through the grass.

She hissed when a curse sizzled by so closely that her shoulder got burned. They were much closer than they had assumed and the darkness was already lifting again.

"Kill them, we only need Potter!" she heard. Then a Death Eater emerged in front of them and Nott pushed her out of the way of a curse in the last second.

They weren't getting out of this alive, Hermione knew. She hadn't believed what Nott had said for a second. There was no way the Death Eaters would just ignore them and run after Harry. They weren't daft. But sometimes, sacrifices were necessary. For Harry, she would sacrifice everything. She had been ready to send him to safety and take the hit herself.

Still, in the face of death, Hermione felt her heart racing like never before and she viciously cast hexes and curses to all sides as more Death Eaters were emerging from the darkness. They were many; they were relentless. Barely, she escaped a killing curse and then was hit with something that cut deep into her calf.

She swore and sent a blood boiling hex back. Hermione had no time to shudder when her curse actually hit its target and the person went down. She was bleeding profoundly and had to throw herself to the ground to avoid more hexes. She didn't even know where Nott was at this point. She felt deserted, helpless in the circle of Death Eaters.

This is it, she thought. This is the end.

She pulled her arms up, a desperate attempt to protect her face, a useless reflex like a child falling to the ground and instinctively pushing out its arms to break the fall.

She felt like crying, the pain in her leg was becoming unbearable. In those few seconds on the ground, Hermione wondered if it would hurt, if dying was painful.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:**

 _"Draco?"_

 _"Fuck." He grabbed her arms and hauled her up, nearly carrying her whole weight as he pulled her away from the open field._

 _His hair was unkempt, there was dried blood in his hairline._

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 **Thank you for my betas Nora and KSB and a special thanks to one of my longtime readers and good friend fantasticlavendercrystals for her amazing reviews!**


	32. They Die

**I can't believe we are already nearing the end! You are all incredible to stick with me even though I have been absent for so long.  
**

 **I'd like to advertise my other story Threats and Treson a little (again :'D). I already got some wonderful reviews, and I'm updating it about once a week. Check it out if you want more of my Dramione! My writing is much better in that story haha. Looking back at She is Clueless I'm proud to see that I improved over time :)  
**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 _This is it, she thought. This is the end._

 _She pulled her arms up, a desperate attempt to protect her face, a useless reflex like a child falling to the ground and instinctively pushing out its arms to break the fall._

 _Hermione wondered if it would hurt, if dying was painful._

* * *

Instead of simply killing her or cursing her to die a slow death, someone grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.

Hermione screamed and kicked, ignoring the pain radiating through her leg. Fear was shooting through her like bullets, piercing her lungs as she cried.

"Hush, my dear. Calm down. You're hurting yourself." Hands held her arms locked across her torso, pinning her to the ground.

Hermione jerked from side to side, tearing her eyes wide open in fear. Then she stilled.

"Mrs W-Weasley!" She tried to breathe, but her throat constricted. Gasping for breath, relieved tears streamed down her cheeks.

"It hurts," she sobbed. "It hurts so bad."

Molly Weasley nodded. "Don't worry, dear, you'll be as good as new in a moment."

"Hurry up, Mum!" someone called from behind her.

"I need to concentrate, Fred. Keep them away!" Mrs Weasley returned and then carefully cut away the leg of Hermione's pants to examine her wound.

She twirled her wand, murmuring a spell, Hermione didn't recognise, and slowly the biting pain faded to a dull ache. She watched with fascination as the wound slowly closed, skin knitting together smoothly. Her whole body trembled with shock, but she was too fascinated to care.

"You're quite good at healing," Hermione said, surprised. Her voice was shaky.

"With children like Fred and George you need to know how to heal all kinds of wounds." Mrs Weasley smiled at her. "You look like death, poor child. Here's some Blood-Replenishing Potion, you've lost more than is healthy."

Hermione downed the contents of the vial she was given. Only after feeling the stabilising effects of the potion, she was able to take in the scene around them.

The whole Weasley clan seemed to have gathered, standing in a protective circle around them and fighting off the Death Eaters that had attacked Hermione and Nott. Said Slytherin was nowhere in sight. He must have run without her, Hermione realised. He hadn't been ready to die as she had.

"I can fight," Hermione said as she watched the Weasleys battling the cloaked figures under the moonlight.

No one bothered to cast a Light Charm as spells and curses sizzled through the air like lightning. Faces were illuminated by flashes, silvery masks reflected explosions and the grass around them was patched with burned grass.

"We should get you away from here, Hermione dear. This is no place for children."

"I'm not a child anymore," Hermione said. She looked Molly Weasley in the eyes. "I want to fight."

Mrs Weasley looked conflicted but then she nodded slowly. "Just take care of your leg, it will need a little longer to stop hurting."

Hermione nodded bravely and pushed herself up and came to stand with the help of Mrs Weasley. Her calf hurt like a dog had bitten down on it.

She put most of her weight on the healthy leg and grabbed her wand that Mrs Weasley was handing her. The Weasleys were fighting the Death Eaters around them furiously, but the group became more shattered with every moment and it was obvious that they needed support.

Hermione nodded to Mrs Weasley and pushed forward to stand next to Percy and Charlie that were dueling with two hulky Death Eaters.

After shooting several hexes and dodging quite a few, Hermione managed to land a hit on one of them. The ache in her leg had slowly faded and she fought alongside Percy against the remaining one while Charlie turned to help Bill fight a small group of cloaked men.

"Congratulations by the way," Hermione panted as she turned to stand back-to-back with Percy.

"What?" he asked confused.

"You'll be a great father, Percy."

"Oh, right! Bugger, I still need to tell mum."

"Why wait?" Hermione grinned as she reflected another spell. For a moment she was separated from Percy and then heard him calling for his mother.

"Mum," Percy shouted over the noise of the battle. "Mum, what I wanted to tell you—" He whirled around to send hexes towards two Death Eaters who had shed their outer robes. Their masks still covered their faces and sweat was running down their exposed necks in beads as they barely managed to pull up a shield before Bill eliminated both of them.

Molly Weasley impatiently clicked her tongue. "What do you have to tell me, dear? Do it now so that I can concentrate on showing these coarse beasts what a Weasley is capable of, won't you?"

"Mum, I'm going to be a father!" Percy shouted back. "Penelope is pregnant." His face shone brightly in the last light of dusk. His eyes full of adrenaline induced proudness and joy when he broke the good news to his mother.

It was with that expression of innocent happiness that a blinding explosion hit his back violently and flung him forwards. It was with that expression on his pale freckled face, framed by flaming red hair that he died, his shining eyes never seeing his son being born.

"Percy, no…" Molly Weasley breathed. "Percy! My Son! Not MY SON!"

Hermione didn't hear Mrs Weasley shout, she just saw her lips moving, saw her ashen face, red hair contrasting sickly with her paling cheeks.

The explosion had pushed Hermione backward, her lungs felt like they were drenched in tar as she tried to breathe. Her heartbeat was a rushing current in her ears accompanied by a shrill beeping sound. It was as if the explosion had torn into her eardrums and pierced into her brain.

She knew that she needed to get up, that she needed to raise her wand and protect herself, but when she tried to stand, her sense of balance failed her and she faltered back to the ground.

"Granger." She shook her head. It was like getting rid of water that had run into her ears, muting her hearing like cotton.

"Get up, Granger. It's not safe here, there are more coming."

She looked up at the person urging her to move. Faintly she was aware of her lips moving, calling his name. She didn't hear any sound leave her mouth.

"Draco?"

"Fuck." He grabbed her arms and hauled her up, nearly carrying her whole weight as he pulled her away from the open field.

His hair was unkempt, there was dried blood in his hairline.

"W-Wait." She wanted to turn back, to see if the Weasleys were alright, if they were still fighting.

"There's nothing you can do. If they are clever, they run."

"We were winning, we—"

"You were losing the moment the Dark Lord decided to enter the battle. It's over Granger."

Hermione's head shot up, her eyes fixing Draco. "He's here?"

"And he'll kill us all if we don't run now."

"Draco—" He didn't listen to her and just pulled her further away towards the border of the property where the fence was looming like a tomb guard. "Draco, listen! We can't run. Not anymore. This might be the only chance Harry gets to win this war!"

"Fine," he spat and let her arm drop. Hermione staggered and barely found her footing. "If you want to stay, I'm not holding you back. Go on, find Potter. I'll be gone. I am not risking my life for this suicide mission you are on!"

Hermione stared at him. He stared back, fury and desperation and fear written all over his face. A year ago, she would have never thought him capable of displaying so much emotion.

Hermione nodded. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yeah, it's okay. Save yourself."

He opened his mouth and closed it again; then he shook his head. "Nothing is okay, Hermione. I-I don't want you to… I'm-I'm a bloody coward, and you know that."

Hermione hadn't missed his half sentence. "You don't want me to _what_?" Somehow, this felt urgent, it felt like something she needed to know. Hermione knew she shouldn't waste time; Harry needed her, the Weasleys needed her, but right now, she needed an answer. She needed Draco to finish what he had started, to explain this unspoken thing that hung between them.

"I don't-" his voice broke before he looked away. "I don't want you to die."

"I don't want to die either," she said. Her voice sounded hollow, her words somehow uncandid. It felt as if she was meant to say something else, to speak a truth she didn't know herself.

"I don't want you to go back there… please. I need you." His voice was barely a whisper.

Something gripped at her heart; a shudder tingled along her spine.

The noise of the battle rumbled faintly in the distance, but Hermione was lost in the moment as if trapped in a different reality, a parallel universe that held her tethered to this conversation.

Draco seemed lost in a maze of his own making, conflicted by the words that had left his mouth. His hands grasped at thin air at his sides as if he was looking to pull the words back, to unsay them.

Hermione couldn't let him. It held a significance that shook her world. She didn't even dare to think it, but he wanted her to be there for him. _Needed_ her, even if only for this moment.

She didn't register when her body had started to move, but she pushed up on her toes and raised her hands to his face, pulling him down to meet her. She wanted to say something, but the words were dissolving on their tongues as she kissed him. And she knew that he understood her nonetheless. That he knew what she was feeling that moment because he was feeling the same. She was certain of that because it stood written in the way his hands grabbed her waist and pulled her against him, in the way his lips parted and he tasted her. Curious and hungry and desperate.

They didn't have time to find out whatever that meant for both of them as the battle closed in on them.

A series of explosions shook the ground under them and they broke apart.

The members of the Order were falling back, unable to hold the line against the Death Eaters that were fighting much more dirty. More deadly.

"We need to get away. Now."

"We can't, Draco." As much as she wanted to hold him and never let go, as much as her lips still burned from the kiss, Hermione knew that this might be the only chance to get the remaining Horcruxes or at least finding out where they were. But at this rate, Harry was more likely to die in the battle long before all Horcruxes were destroyed.

That was when she heard Mrs Weasley shriek. It made her blood feel like it was boiling and freezing at the same time. Without thinking, Hermione tore away from Draco and ran towards where she saw a shock of red hair on the ground. Above, stood Bellatrix Black, wand twisting to inflict pain and an evil grin on her face.

Hermione didn't even come close enough to shoot a spell at her, when one of the trees collapsed after being hit by a series of spells.

Luckily, only the outer branches had hit her, but she was trapped between them and her face and hands were burning with scratches.

"There you are," someone said, standing above her.

Hermione twisted her head and froze when she recognised Greyback. He looked a little worse for wear, but his eyes were sharp and a wolfish grin played around his lips.

"I thought I had lost you, little bird. I really, really want to play with you a little more."

No, no, no, no. Hermione thought. This was bad, very bad. She desperately tried to pull free, but her foot was caught in the fork of a branch.

Greyback bend down, grabbing her hair and pulled so hard, it felt like he wanted to rip off her scalp. She shrieked and struggled, her hands flying to get a hold of his, to stop the _pain_.

"Off," Grayback grunted and let her drop back between the branches.

Something sharp had hit him in the head where a long gash was bleeding now. He growled and turned around only to be hit again, this time by chains coiling around his limbs.

"We got this, Robards!" someone shouted. "Here's a girl, get her out from under the tree."

The branches were levitated and Hermione breathed with relief when she recognised the Aurors in their purple uniforms.

The one freeing her from the tree was the one with the open shoelaces. The Ministry must have caught wind of the fight that ensued on the grounds of Malfoy Manor and their Aurors were arriving in rapid succession.

"About time someone called us, eh?"

The Auror helped her up and send her towards where she spotted Molly Weasley being carried by her two oldest sons. "We take over from here." The Auror said and followed his colleagues that had somehow managed to subdue Greyback and render him unconscious before moving towards the looming Manor.

The tables seemed to be turning quickly as it was now the Death Eaters retreating rapidly. It almost seemed too easy as a horde of Aurors advanced quickly.

A red bolt scraped by closely, and Hermione turned her attention to the house.

Her breath caught as she recognised the figure that was standing in the grand entrance of the Manor where Aurors had encircled him. His wand was risen to the sky, eyes closed and pale lips silently moving, chanting a spell that seemed to fill the air around them with magic like an empty bowl filling with water.

"Granger, fucking hell, move!"

Draco had found her and yanked her further away as the magic spread around the Aurors circling Voldemort and beyond.

"What is that?" She breathed as the magic shimmered at the edges of the field and then slowly dissolve. All movement had halted within the range of it and it went eerily quiet.

"Nothing good, that much is certain."

And then the Aurors turned. Unisono. It was the most unsettling thing Hermione had seen in her life. They were looking at them now, or more specific: in the general direction where the Order had retreated towards.

And then they advanced.

From behind Voldemort, the Death Eaters spilled out from the Manor, where they had fled when the strange magic had unraveled.

The Auror that had just moments ago freed her from the tree, was still close, and he was fast as he charged right towards them.

"Oh fuck. Run, Granger. RUN!"

Hermione stumbled, unable to tear her gaze away from the empty eyes of the Auror. He staggered a few steps closer and then suddenly flashing his teeth like a feral dog.

" _Stupor!"_

A flash from Draco's wand hit the Auror in the chest, but he only stumbled a few steps back, nearly toppling over, but barely catching his balance. His dead eyes didn't leave their target as he advanced a second time.

Finally, Hermione felt her feet moving, hot blood rushing through her calves as she turned and ran. She pulled Draco by the arm along with her as he was still staring dumb folded at the Auror who didn't seem affected by his stunner at all.

Just when he was about to reach them, he dropped dead to the ground. As if all life had left him at once.

A look back towards the Aurors still farther away showed that more of them collapsed. Nearly half went down without so much as uttering a tone. The rest, however, was still looking dangerous and they were going against Order members now. Feral and out of control, fighting with their hands slashing at their opponents like claws. Biting and tearing and impossible to tear down with simple spells.

Hermione watched with horror as Mad-Eye sliced off the hands of one of the mad Aurors that had managed to wrap them Tonk's neck.

Draco suddenly pulled her to the ground, and a green jet of light barely missed them.

Hermione didn't waste time to cast a _Protego_ , but she knew that no _Protego_ could fend off killing curses.

Peter Pettigrew had his wand leveled at them, mere feet away.

"Hold still, and it won't hurt. Your Lord has been most disappointed in you Draco. We don't accept traitors, you know the rules. Now let me end this."

Draco snarled a hex that must have taken Pettigrew by surprise as it hit his shoulder when he twisted out of the way a second too late.

"Gahh! Fuuck!" The fabric of his worn cloak as singed where he had been hit and the skin showed angry red boils.

"You will pay for that, Malfoy! _Sectumsempra_!"

Hermione gasped and tried to pull Draco out of the way of the hex. It flared at the tip of Pettigrew's wand and something must have gone wrong as lightning crackled around it like electricity before it went off in a huge flash, knocking her off her feet. The last thing she saw before she went down was a shadow moving towards them, moving towards Draco and then she landed with a thud on the ground.

Groaning, she tried to push up, her bones aching from the impact. Her body had taken more than one blow that day already and it was wearing her down like a wet blanket on her shoulders. But then only one thought flashed through her mind and she jumped up.

"Draco!"

Rushing to where he lay on the grass, she breathed with relief, when he seemed uninjured.

A groan caught her attention and her head snapped up. "Oh… _God_..."

Pettigrew was nowhere in sight, but someone else was there, flat on his back, wheezing and injured in the most gruesome way. Hermione felt violently ill.

Beside her, Draco made a noise at the back of his throat that sounded like a wounded animal. Then he scrambled over to the boy gasping for air.

"Draco…" It was a fading whisper.

Hermione felt like an intruder when Theodore gazed up at Draco through clouded eyes. He was dying, that much was clear. And something about that was deeply private.

"Draco?"

"Theo, I'm here, I'm here."

"I know you don't f-feel the same, b-but I-" he wheezed and coughed and tears leaked from his eyes.

"Don't talk, it's okay. It's going to be okay."

Nothing was going to be okay. Hermione knew that. Draco knew that. And Theodore knew.

"I need to... " he interrupted himself, coughing again. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. "I love you, Drake."

Draco sat back on his haunches. "I know."

Theodore smiled. "Good."

And his eyes died as they slowly fell closed.

He lay there as if he were asleep if one could just ignore the broken mess that was his ribcage. Half dried blood coloured the lush grass around him in a dirty reddish-brown. It stained Draco's pale, aristocratic hands holding onto his friend as he kneeled in the mud, crying out in agony. Dirty blood betrayed the peace of death and mocked the boy's concept of blood purity. In the end, his blood was just the same as hers.

Someone so young shouldn't have to die. Ever. It wasn't fair. He would have had dreams, future plans: a job to apply for, a girl to propose to. He wouldn't get any of that now. In the end, all he got was a chance to prove himself. He had done that. He had been brave like a Gryffindor and loyal like a true friend. In the end, his prejudices and faults hadn't kept Theodore from being a good person.

Draco had closed his eyes and the pain on his face mirrored the pain his friend had felt in his last moments.

Hermione reached for his hands and his fingers closed around hers instantly. Pulling him closer, she hugged him, felt the weight of him sag against her body when he buried his face in the crook of her neck.

"The Malfoy brat with a Mudblood, who would have thought that possible?"

Hermione jumped, looking up in horror at Peter Pettigrew who shook off the last rat-like features as he transformed back into a man. His rat-form must have saved him from the explosion of his backfiring spell that had still somehow managed to hit Theodore full force when he had jumped between the curse and Draco.

Pettigrew grinned like a maniac, his yellowed teeth widely exposed. "Did you like my little show? I've always been good with those explosions."

"Peter, that's enough," Professor Dumbledore said calmly, appearing out of thin air.

The rat-faced man looked at the apparition with big eyes. With a flick of Professor Dumbledore's wand, Pettigrew's own weapon flew from his limp hand.

"Prof-fessor. Professor D-Dumbledore," he stuttered. Pettigrew looked around, finding himself alone in a field of bodies . "What have I done? What- what have I become, Professor? Oh!" he wailed, faltering and falling to his knees. "I have done awful things, Professor! I killed them! I killed James and Lilly!" his hands covered his face, the fingers of his silver hand dragging down his cheeks, followed by tears. "I didn't want that, I was so afraid, Professor! I don't deserve to live, not even this awful life. Please end it, Dumbledore. There is nothing left for me."

The old wizard shook his head sadly. The man on the ground let his hands drop to his sides, looking up at his former Headmaster. "Professor Dumbledore, where were you when I needed you? The Order never thought of protecting me! It was always James and Lily. I was too weak to protect myself," he shook his head, his thinning hair plastered to his sweaty forehead. "I was too weak to protect my friends from myself, Professor. Why did you abandon me? Why?!" he screamed, his voice breaking at the last word, snot and tears running down the ugly man's face.

It was a pitiful sight. Hermione felt an ache in her heart for this man who had betrayed his best friends, who had betrayed everyone. She felt reminded of herself, in the same position, without protection. She was forced to _obliviate_ her own parents to assure their safety that Professor Dumbledore hadn't provided them. Had the Headmaster neglected Pettigrew as well? Was he responsible for his awful sins because he had abandoned him when he had needed him?

"Peter, my boy," Professor Dumbledore spoke with a soft voice, the tremor in it betraying the heavy emotions he was hiding. "How can I forgive what you have done?"

"Don't," Pettigrew shook his head. "I don't deserve it, Professor. Just end this damned existence. End it for all the people I have harmed, for all the friends I have betrayed. I am weak. I am not a worthy Gryffindor, Professor," the man was begging, his head hanging low, staring at the muddy ground before him bleakly.

"Peter, all this is your fault. Look around, what did you do?"

The man sagged, ugly tears streaming down his face. "I'm s-sorry, Professor. I-I'm sorry."

He was silent, when Professor Dumbledore slowly stepped closer, kneeling in front of the man, dirtying his midnight blue robes and reaching for Pettigrew's shoulders.

"There is no way back, Peter. You cannot undo your sins," he said, shaking his head, his eyes glistening wet. He pulled the man towards him, who at that moment looked so much like a young, disobedient boy that had confessed his deeds. Professor Dumbledore held Peter in his arms like a lost son.

A silver reflection glittered through the night. Then everything turned red.

Professor Dumbledore stiffened and slowly sagged to the side. Pettigrew pushed the old man away, and he fell away, his eyes white and unseeing. The old man's chest was slashed and thick blood poured to the ground. Professor Dumbledore twitched, staring up at his former student that had stabbed him. The ground seemed to tilt as a wave of nausea claimed Hermione.

"You left me alone, Dumbledore. What did you expect me to do? You ignored my pleading, and you ignored when I disappeared for a few days. My mother was never sick, Dumbledore. She was dead. They were there, waiting for me to return home to care for her," he whispered, a maniac tilt to his voice. "You didn't protect me. I had to do everything to survive. And look, how far I've gotten! I've defeated the greatest wizard of our time," he boasted. "My Lord will be most pleased with me!" he rejoiced, arms stretched to both sides and his head thrown back, looking into the sky as if he prayed to Voldemort like to god himself.

A green whiz lightened the night, stabbing Pettigrew in the chest and the man breathed his last breath before he fell to the ground. His body hit the dirt beside Professor Dumbledore's lifeless form, head first, facing his old Headmaster with wide, unseeing eyes.

"Goodbye, old friend," Professor Lupin said, stepping forth from the dark. He moved towards the dead bodies in the midst of the killed Aurors and Death Eaters mechanically. His wand held in a trembling but firm grip wand at his side. "James, I hope you can find peace now," he whispered, levitating Professor Dumbledore's form to a clean strip of grass on a little mound, separating the old Headmaster from the traitor.

* * *

 **I can't tell you how much it hurt to write this chapter :'( But at the same time, I'm an evil gremlin that loves to write about pain and death hehe**

 **Leave your thoughts!**

 **Big thanks to Nora Fares, KoolStoryBro for beta reading :)**


	33. He Falls

**This is the moment you've all been waiting for for some time now :3 I can't believe this story it's nearing its end!  
**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 _"Goodbye, old friend," Professor Lupin said, stepping forth from the dark. "James, I hope you can find peace now," he whispered, levitating Professor Dumbledore's form to a clean strip of grass on a little mound, separating the old Headmaster from the traitor._

* * *

"Come, you two. It's not safe here. I'll take you to the others."

Hermione nodded mutely. Everything was death and violence around them. She didn't want to fight anymore. As much as she wanted to support Harry, even if it would cost her life, she couldn't. She felt weak and vulnerable. What difference could she make?

She pulled Draco up with her, holding his blood-stained hand in hers. This wasn't supposed to be his fight. He should be somewhere safe, somewhere at home, but he was home, and it was everything but safe. She couldn't start to imagine the horror of losing the safety of a home in the cruelest way possible.

* * *

Some Ministry workers that must have come along with the Aurors had put up a small tent and had brought healers from St. Mungo's.

While more and more people came in, certainly not all of them trained Aurors, most could only be provided basic healing. It was in no way enough, and the cries of pain and the coldness of death were tangible.

"Hermione. Thank Merlin, you're okay."

"Harry!" She hugged him. Hugged him tight.

Harry pointedly ignored Draco standing awkwardly behind her.

"It's time, Hermione. I can feel that it's close, and I know I can destroy him."

Hermione wanted to protest, knowing what was to come. This would be his end as much as it would be Voldemort's. But she couldn't bring herself to make it any harder for Harry. Couldn't tell him how much she wanted him to just run and hide.

"Let me come with you," she said instead, knowing that she wanted nothing more than curl up in a ball and wait for everything to hopefully turn out well instead.

Harry shook his head. "I can't take you. The cloak won't fit us two in a battle like this. It's too much of a risk."

It was logical, it was a relief, and Hermione felt guilt for thinking that. She didn't want to face Voldemort. And she wanted to cry for her friend, knowing that in opposition to her, he had no choice in the matter.

She hugged him again. "Take care, Harry," was all she could whisper, and it felt like a lie on her lips. It was a lie.

With one last squeeze, he donned the invisibility cloak and was gone.

Hermione stepped in front of the tent, facing the battle where the bodies of the Aurors still wreaked havoc, keeping up their fight even with limbs missing. It was impossible to tell where Harry was in that mess.

But then there was a shout that droned distinctive over the battlefield. "Potter! He hides under his cloak!"

Hermione gasped and started forward, to do what, she didn't know, but Draco held her back.

Then, Harry was visible, surrounded by a circle of Death Eaters, one of them tossing the cloak on the ground.

"He's mine!" Voldemort shrieked. In a flash, he was upon Harry and shot spell after spell. The Death Eaters dived out of the way and Harry took refuge behind a giant willow tree that swayed under the power of spells.

Harry gazed upwards at the canopy. One moment, he hid from the spells blasting away the bark of the tree and the next, he stepped out, arms wide, and it took but a split second for him to be hit and thrown to the ground.

The willow shook, and it's bark splintered. Then it crashed on Harry's dead body.

"Oh no. No, no, no! Harry!" Hermione cried out, the paralyzing shock falling away from her.

Draco stopped her again from running towards where Harry lay, buried under the massive tree that had fallen onto the dew dusted grass sparkling with the rising sun like a bed of stars around the fallen hero. Harry was dead.

Draco pulled her into a tight hug to still her movements. "I'm so sorry, love. So sorry," he whispered into her hair. "Don't be afraid, don't worry. We'll run and hide, and we'll never come back. It's alright Hermione, everything is going to be alright." He held her tight but she pushed at his chest to look into his eyes.

"He wasn't meant to die now, it's too early, Draco! It's too early!"

"Too early? What are you talking about?" He looked at her worried as if she'd lost her mind.

"The Horcruxes are still there! We haven't destroyed all of them yet! Harry can't die before the last one is gone!"

The words her mouth was uttering reached her brain, desperation taking over. Harry was dead, and they didn't have a clue where the last Horcrux was. It was all lost now! They had no chance of finding it without Harry. Only _he_ could feel them. It could be anywhere.

Harry was dead. He was gone. Hermione cried out, sorrow hitting her hard when she realized that what he had told them on that winter night had become her truth. Harry was gone, Harry was dead. Her fists clenched onto Draco's sleeves.

He said something to her, but she couldn't hear him anymore. They had lost. They had lost everything, and Harry had died for nothing. Kind, brave Harry had died in vain.

"Hermione! Listen!" Draco shook her. "Listen to me!" He grabbed her face and turned it towards him to make her look into his eyes. "How many are there?"

"What?" she asked through her tears.

"His Horcruxes! How many?"

"You know what Horcruxes are?" she asked confused, her brain still muddled with hopelessness.

"Not now, Hermione! How many? Tell me!"

"One is still left," she stuttered.

"And his snake, it's one as well?"

"Yes," she nodded, more tears leaking from her eyes. The blasted snake. "It's dead."

"I know where the other one is, Hermione."

"You… what?!"

"I had to bring him one from my aunt's vault. That was my task. It's in the Manor."

"You're kidding!" She looked at him with big eyes.

He shook his head. "The cup from Aunt Bella's vault at Gringotts. It is right here! He hoarded it close to himself to keep it safe. There are a thousand curses and protection charms around it and on the door. You couldn't touch it if you wanted to…" he trailed off. "I need to find my father," he finally said resolutely, staring at the wizards and witches on the battlefield still throwing curses at each other.

"Your father? This is important Draco! Where is this room? You can't run off to find your father now!" She grabbed his arm to stop him.

"I have a plan, Hermione. I know what to do, but we'll need my father. I can't do it, but he _can_."

He kissed her, quickly but with purpose. "Believe me."

Hermione nodded dazed. His kisses did that to her.

"How do we find him?"

Draco pointed at the manor. In the entrance stood a regal looking figure that was unmistakably Lucius Malfoy.

He had remained behind as the rest of the Death Eaters had flooded out to tear apart the Order. The Order that was quickly losing a fight that seemed hopeless with Harry buried under the willow.

"Whatever we do, we don't have much time until all falls apart," Hermione urged.

They had to take a long route to avoid getting dragged into the battle, but they moved quickly between the bushes and hedges until they reached the entrance. Lucius Malfoy looked a little worse for wear, his elegant clothes stained and ripped at the right sleeve, his eyes staring bone weary at the destruction around his home.

Draco stepped forward, and in a flash, his father had his wand pointed at his chest.

"Draco." To Hermione's surprise, he pulled his son towards him and held him for a second. Then, he spotted her.

He sneered down at her, and Hermione unconsciously ducked her head.

Draco took her hand. "Not now, father. We have more important issues to deal with."

"And what would that be?"

"Burn the manor, burn the fucking thing to the ground, father. It's infested with this lunatic scum who dirtied the floor our ancestors walked on! It's no longer worthy of a Malfoy, its purpose was to protect us, and it didn't. As long as it stands, he'll never let us free. It has to be destroyed."

Lucius Malfoy was a scary man. Hermione couldn't be any more glad that he was fully focused on the manor. His eyes promised retribution.

"Your mother always wanted us to move to France," he said, casually. Then he pointed his wand at the entrance hall beyond the door, aiming at what lay inside as if aiming for the very heart of the house.

"Step back, the wards will collapse."

Fiendfyre had something fascinating, Hermione learned that moment. One second, it was fully under control, sharp like a whip and precise. But in the blink of an eye, it flared and roared to life with a mind of its own.

Lucius Malfoy didn't even attempt to keep it under control. Instead, he urged them to get away.

Behind them, the facade creaked and flames licked through the windows of the first floor. Glass exploded, and even though they were running now, some shards tangled in Hermione's hair as it rained down on them.

Despite the heat now burning her back as it rolled over them in waves, Hermione stopped dead in her tracks. For a split second, she didn't know what was scarier: The all-consuming fire behind them or Voldemort coming right at them from the opposite direction.

She barely got in a breath of surprise, of fear, and then he had passed them. That vile face distorted, pale, greying skin looking sick and... old. The Horcruxes had done their damage.

Stumbling over her own feet, Hermione turned, turned Draco along with her as he was still holding her hand, and they watched Voldemort run like a madman towards the manor. Not _like_ a madman, he _was_ a madman, for he didn't stop when the flames shot out to enwrap him, and a cry was on his lips as he threw himself into the flames to save whatever he believed to be left of his Horcrux.

They watched when he had already disappeared into the building, slashing his wand left and right to fend off the fire. They watched and waited.

Slowly, very slowly, the house crumbled, and while no one dared to say it, while no one dared to breathe a word of their thoughts, they knew that Voldemort was gone.

* * *

 **So... what do you think? I hope the ending isn't too rushed, there have certainly been some characters in these last few chapters that I could have introduced better, so I hope they characterisation didn't fall completely flat :)**

 **There is only one chapter left, I'll upload it as soon as it's edited. It's making me equally sad and happy to see this story come to a conclusion.**

 **I have met many friends by writing this story, and I'm thankful for all your support. Even if I nearly quit halfway through, I don't regret writing this baby one day :)**

 **Special thanks to my betas Nora and KSB!**


	34. She is Clueless

**Okay, I couldn't keep you waiting, and couldn't wait any longer myself :D Here is the final chapter!  
**

 **::::::::::**

 **Previously:**

 _Slowly, very slowly, the house crumbled, and while no one dared to say it, while no one dared to breathe a word of their thoughts, they knew that Voldemort was gone._

* * *

Later, Hermione saw Draco still standing there at the spot she had left him. He was staring at the blazing fire that still licked along the skeleton of his ancestors' home. No one cared to extinguish it as long as it didn't spread further.

Hermione contemplated going to him, but she decided that it was over. Her friends needed her now, and she was free to let him be. He had done his part, and now he could go and be free of his past self. She was glad for him, he deserved his freedom after all he had suffered through the last term. But now it was no longer her place to guide him. He would have to go on his own now, he would learn to embrace this new self and stand on his own feet without further guidance.

It had been a long way for both of them to reach this point. But Hermione had been patient, and she had let him push her down again and again until he trusted her. Now she would be selfish.

She turned her back to Draco and went down the hill where the healers of St. Mungo's took care the hurt.

She found Ron sitting on a cot in a corner inside the bustling tent. His eyes were locked onto a still form lying on a bed, breathing so faintly it was easy to miss.

"That effing bastard survived again." He shook his head unbelievingly. "Harry is bloody indestructible, isn't he?" He suddenly laughed, and Hermione couldn't hold back any longer and threw herself at her friend, hugging him tightly. He winced and she moved off him flustered and apologised, but he gave her a lopsided smile.

"That's but a few cuts n' bruises, 'Mione," he reassured her, his speech slurred from exhaustion. She patted his knee, relieved. Everything was alright. Ron wasn't badly hurt, and Harry was alive. Her Harry had come back from the dead again.

* * *

Harry was alive, but he hadn't come back. He was in his hospital bed where Hermione and Ron visited him day after day. He lay in silence, not fully asleep but not awake either. Ginny was just down the hall, still suffering from the Snake attack and lying as silent as Harry. It felt wrong having them apart from each other, separated by too many walls and doors.

It ate away at Ron. He was grieving his fallen brother, and Hermione suspected he had already started grieving his sister and his best friend too.

"You know, sometimes I wish he would have just died," he whispered, standing beside her at the foot of Harry's bed. Hermione took his hand in her own. It was warm and comforting, and he gave her fingers a gentle squeeze.

Her breaths shuttered. "This is an awful existence. Oh, Harry, please come back to us."

The healers held little hope that he would wake up. He might have returned from the dead, but the willow tree that had buried him, had destroyed his body. His spine was fractured, and the pain had caused his mind to shut down.

* * *

When Hermione wasn't visiting Harry, she hid in the Library of Hogwarts. She didn't read the books, she only touched them, let her fingers glide over their pages, breathing in their smell. It made her forget everything for a moment, but reading seemed impossible. Everytime she tried, she felt that a part of her had died with all the others on the grounds of Malfoy Manor. Reading was just too much a reminder of her old self. The letters would swim before her eyes and distort into evil shapes and empty riddles.

She wanted it back, her old life. Cradling Hogwarts a History, she returned to her dorm. Hogwarts was near empty, only few members of the staff had remained behind to take care of the few students that hadn't gone home to their parents after the news had spread.

None of those could follow her into her dorm. People left her alone there, but at the same time, it was sometimes worse to be in that emptiness. Draco wasn't there anymore, and that was all she felt. He hadn't come back; last Hermione had heard about him, he had apparently gone to France with his family. At least no one had seen him or any of the Malfoys in wizarding Britain for some time.

She let herself into his room, feeling a guilty pleasure in the way it still looked like him, _smelled_ like him. As much as Hermione wanted to convince herself that she hadn't, she knew deep down that she had fallen in love with Draco Malfoy. She had fallen in love with a broken boy that had made her life hell for so many years and that had fallen apart under the reality of his own prejudices burning the world around them.

But now he had run away from the aftermath that was still keeping society in a tight grip, from the memories, from her. But she had run first, hadn't she?

Hermione lay down on his bed, her favourite book pressed to her chest. She had run when Voldemort was gone. She had abandoned him because then she hadn't known, hadn't wanted to know how much she needed him. How much she wanted him.

Her fingers curled around the book as a painful sob build in her throat. Why was everything falling apart now that it could go back to being right?

She cried, pulling his pillow over her face and screamed.

The book pressed into her skin as she held on tighter, and it reminded her too much of who she had been and who she wasn't. Flinging it away with all her might, she listened as it bounced off the wall with a satisfying thud.

Hermione lay still, frustration leaving her slowly. Bleeding out from her like from an open wound.

And then she scrambled off the bed and found the book on the floor, lifting it carefully like a child and crying at the wrinkled pages. The spine was broken, and she held it and cried, rocking her body back and forth on the cold stone floor she was kneeling on.

With trembling hands, she pulled her wand and mended the broken spine and it was painful to watch how quickly the damage was repaired. How easy. Harry's spine would never be easily fixed like that. He was a broken book forever. His body had failed him, it was a trap, a useless tool. His mind was probably as broken as his body.

* * *

When Ginny finally woke up, still weak but alive and on the road to recovery, she didn't leave the hospital. She didn't leave Harry's side. The healers tried to assure her that there was nothing she could do for Harry, that he was more likely to die in the coma than ever waking up from it. Ginny wouldn't listen.

Ron tried to pull her away, to drag her back into life, but Hermione understood. She understood that it was impossible to let go.

* * *

When Draco returned from wherever he had been hiding, whens he finally saw him again, Hermione decided it was time to be herself again before this turned into madness. It was time to tell him that she needed him too.

But he just had to be an arsehole. Typical.

The first thing he said to her after _weeks_ was "You're in my way."

Hermione was equally shocked and paralyzed, and her body responded by automatically stepping aside to let him through.

His seat was somewhere in the back, far from hers right in the front. Many people had come to honour Dumbledore at the edge of the lake, the usually peaceful site was crowded. The merpeople sang their dirge in awful, shrill voices, and Hermione wanted to leave more than anything.

She was angry, _so_ angry. How dare Draco dismiss her like that? How dare he decided to finally show up at Dumbledore's memorial celebration probably just to keep up a face in the public and play reformed Death Eater.

* * *

The speeches dragged on, and Hermione found she had no tears left to cry. She turned in her seat, watching the solemn faces around her. That was when she saw Draco leave.

Hermione whispered an excuse to Ron who had diligently saved a seat for his sister although she refused to leave Harry to attend, following the head of blond hair.

She caught up with Draco when he had just reached the gates to the road to Hogsmeade.

"Where do you think you are going?" she shrieked, planting herself in his way. "Pay him respect, won't you? He died for us, he was our mentor!"

Draco scowled down at her. "So what? What do I care who he was to you? To any of them?" He made a gesture towards the rows of people in the distance at the ceremony.

"He deserves respect, even if you didn't like him, Draco."

"And what about Theo? Does he not deserve the same respect? Theo died for us as well! Theo died in our place, and you know it! Dumbledore just made a fool of himself, he was killed because he was getting sentimental. Only a fool would have trusted Pettigrew to be humble!

Theo knew exactly what he was doing! He knew that he would die, and he died for us! Dumbledore just died for his own conscience. But do you see anybody mourn for Theo? No one cares, Hermione! No one cares because they assume he deserved what he got, he was a Death Eater son, so he is not worth their respect. Theo deserves it trifold if Dumbledore does." A tear escaped the corner of his eye, and Hermione softened.

"They don't know better, Draco. They weren't there."

"Then don't condemn me when I refuse to follow along like all the other sheep here, Hermione."

"Why are you so angry, Draco?"

He shook his head, wiping the tears off his face furiously. "Where were you?" He asked. "I was waiting for you, watching my home burn down. You never returned."

His sudden question catapulted Hermione's mind back to that awful day when she had left the sight of the flames corroding the grand Manor behind in search for her friends, stumbling through the meadow exhausted and empty. "It was over, Draco. I needed to get away from that dreadful place."

"That place was my home."

"And that place is where Harry nearly died and my friends got hurt!"

"My home was burned down, my friend actually died because he's no freak that is bloody invincible. Don't you think that fucking hurt me too?"

"I know. I'm no fool. But that wasn't my problem at the moment."

"No, it seems you simply didn't bloody care about me," he replied bitterly. "I gave you my trust, I gave you my home, and I gave you my world. But you couldn't even give me one hour of your precious time."

"I owe you nothing, Draco. Don't even try to guilt me into caring for your problems. I cared for the end of this stupid war, and I cared for my friends surviving it. But I definitely don't care for whatever you do with your time now."

"So you're telling me you fucking pretended everything? You fooled me into trusting you!"

"I still did it for you, Draco," she growled. "I saw something in you, the possibility of something good. I saw potential. You just needed someone to pull it out for you because you were stuck chin deep in your pathetic prejudices and wrong upbringing."

"Just because you think you are better than me—that you are better than anyone—doesn't give you the right to play puppet master with my life! You have no right to try and change me! I was fine with my place, I was fine with myself, and now there is only hate and regret. You are fucking cruel! You pretend to be in love so I betray everything, EVERYTHING, I believe in, and then you tell me off because obviously your bloody heart is cold as stone! You're tearing me apart, Hermione!"

"So now you expect me to lie at your feet just because you've finally done something right in your life? You should be fucking thankful, Draco. I might have saved your worthless life. I owe you nothing!"

"No, obviously you don't. What a fool I made of myself. I really am useless if I fell for the ploy of a Gryffindor, a Mudblood no less." He sneered.

Strangely, it hurt to turn her back to him and move away. It was a funny little jerk her heart did in that moment. Really, who would have thought it was so hard to not stay and fight with him for eternity. She needed this, Hermione concluded. She needed the thrill of constant fighting and bickering. He had driven her to endless madness and now she was addicted to the constant frustration and irritation.

She definitely needed a break. When Hermione sucked in a breath right before she apparated she felt her lungs clench painfully but in that moment she was already pulled into the ether by her navel and spit out at front steps of the Borrow. She rubbed her chest when she felt a painful spike, probably from the violent apparition sensation. She had wanted to desperately get away from him and had jumped between the places with a little more magic than necessary. But she was relieved that it was over. No more pretending. She was free now, free of him. Free to live her own life at last.

She could do this. She could fall out of love with him. She could.

* * *

Hermione was in the middle of helping Molly and Charlie prepare dinner on a late Sunday afternoon, when a pearly-white horse with flying mane emerged from the wall, scaring Molly so much that she let her baking dish drop with a shriek.

"He's awake." Ginny's voice was breathy and full of tears, full of hope. Then the horse disappeared and Molly started to weep. Hermione stared at where the baking dish had sprung into thousand pieces, trying to process the news.

"Go, Hermione. He'll want to see you," Charlie said, pulling his mother into a hug and patting her back.

* * *

Harry looked tired. A-hundred-years-old-tired. Hermione couldn't hold back, and he shot her a litte, amused smile, replying that no, being in a coma for weeks didn't make you feel rested at all.

Ginny had taken a break. Ron had carried his sister to a second bed they had put up in Harry's room, and she was finally sleeping. Ginny looked just as tired as Harry did.

They had put a wheelchair with straps next to his bed. His muscles weren't able to support him any longer, even while just sitting. "Everything is numb," he said. His voice was quiet like the dead.

"Can you help me outside?" Harry nodded his chin towards the small balcony. The Ministry had pulled a lot of levers to get him into one of the luxurious rooms in St. Mungo's. "The sun shines so nicely. I want to feel it."

Hermione held her breath to hold back tears that were clouding her vision. He wouldn't be able to feel it. He wouldn't feel the sun ever again, the warmth would touch his skin, but his nerve endings wouldn't process that sensation, wouldn't forward it to his brain.

She ignored her trembling hands and pushed the wheelchair closer and proceeded to carefully levitate him from the bed into the chair.

"I shouldn't have come back," Harry said when she took hold of his wrists and put his hands in his lap after fastening him to the wheelchair with the straps, busying herself to not be forced to look into his eyes. "They were there, Hermione. Mum and dad. They were waiting for me."

"They were waiting? Where, Harry?" She looked at him confused. His eyes were glassy, and he seemed pensive and melancholic.

"At Kings Cross."

"Kings Cross?"

"At least it looked like Kings Cross. It was just very clean, and no people were there, only mum and dad. They were waiting for me." A brief flash of regret crossed his features. "They have been waiting for all those years, Hermione."

"They died, Harry. They can't wait anywhere. There's only life and death."

"Maybe. I wasn't dead, and I wasn't alive. And still I'm here. I left them there, Hermione. I left them alone again. They asked me to join them on the train, and I couldn't. I had to watch them leave." He shook his head, his eyes closed on the tears that threatened to fall while the sun shone brightly like any other day. "But I still have Ginny, right?"

Hermione kissed him on the cheek gently, stroking his untamed hair from his eyes that were closed, face turned upwards to the sunlight. His features relaxed, calm, but never at peace. Never at home.

* * *

Se had promised herself to fall out of love, but where did one even start to do that? Beyond all the hurt and things that had been said, she had always known who Draco was and what he was like. And she simply couldn't fault him for still being who he had been before. Still a prick, still a bastard. One she was in love with. She had fallen in love with him despite that and because of it. If he'd be anything else, she was sure she wouldn't want him nearly as much as she did. Maybe they were meant to tear each other apart every chance they got. Maybe they were meant to hurt each other in every way possible.

And Hermione found that she didn't mind. As long as it was him, as long as that meant she could be with him, she didn't mind. Because the craving was driving her mad. Craving his touch, his smell, the mere sight of him.

Harry sensed her frustration, of course he did. Even now, all he did was worry about others.

"Ignore my problems. It's your turn now," she had said, but eventually she had relented when he had told her how incredibly boring and drama-free his current life was, bound to a wheelchair. She had poured her heart out, and he had listened.

Later, Harry had asked her to fetch something for him, a photo album of his parents that he had left at Grimmauld Place. The request was so innocent, that Hermione didn't suspect a thing before she had entered the hall, trying hard to be quiet as not to disturb the painting. She had never been a welcome guest in the eyes of Walpurga Black, not that anyone else had ever been.

But the painting… was gone. The hall, after she had lightened it with a swish of her wand, looked different. Cleaner.

"Miss Granger!" Hermione flinched. Kreacher had emerged at the end of the hall, his shrill voice feeling displaced in the place she had learned to be quiet in. "What a joy to see my master has guest! Kreacher will alert him at once, he has been so lonely."

And with a pop, he disappeared again, and Hermione could hear him scurry down a hall somewhere upstairs.

 _Master_? Harry was in hospital. And since when was Kreacher ever polite to her, much less talked to her?

She slowly went up the stairs to the first floor. Kreacher must have turned the house upside down. Everything was clean. Still a little worn, but tidy and somehow even inviting.

"I'm sorry, Miss. He not wants to see anyone. You is invited to stay and try Kreacher's honey pie, though. It will be done in a few minutes." Hermione whirled around to see Kreacher bow low and then waddle down the stairs she had just climbed.

Taking in her surroundings, she noticed a door at the other end of the hall where a narrow ray of light fell onto the floor.

Not hesitating, she strode over and pushed it open.

"Go away."

His voice was hoarse, and Hermione held her breath. How was this possible?

"W-what are you doing here?"

Draco Malfoy was lying atop the covers on one of the beds, she remembered Harry and Ron had occupied when they had spend their first holidays here.

He didn't look at her. "Had to stay somewhere after my fucking house burned down, didn't I?"

He pointedly kept his gaze fixed upon the ceiling.

"What?"

He sighed. "Merlin, sometimes you can be so dense. Potter gave me my fucking family home back. Wrote a letter that he didn't care for it, and that I can crash here whenever I wanted. As I happen to be otherwise homeless and have absolutely no patience to stay with my parents at the moment, I am forced to endure Kreacher's awful cooking."

"You've been here the whole time?" She had a hard time processing that. Hadn't he gone to France? No, apparently that had only been his parents.

And Harry had known he was here, Harry had set this up. Oh, she had a crow to plug with him.

"Are you still angry at me?" The question was out before she could hold it back. And she had wanted to finally be honest with him, hadn't she? She had at least tried to be honest with herself about what she was feeling.

He scoffed, it was a distorted, tortured sound. "You've ruined my life, Hermione. You've ruined me, and now you don't even want me back. I was simply a tool to reach your goals, and now you don't need me anymore. I'm broken for everybody else. And you ask me if I'm still angry?" He huffed another humourless laugh. "What do you want, Hermione? Why are you here?"

It was tearing at her heart to hear those bitter words, it was cracking apart those fractured pieces he had left her with the last time she had seen him.

"When I decided to help you, I-I thought you deserved a chance. Everybody deserves a chance, don't they? And now I th-think you need another one."

Draco laughed, his arm thrown over his eyes. "I definitely don't need your pity, Granger."

She moved over him to pull his arm from his face revealing streaks of tears running down from both closed eyes. _Look at me_ , she wanted to say.

"I'm here now, Draco. I think I need you. I-I think I wa-ant you." She gulped back a sob. Why was he so difficult? Why was _this_ so difficult?

He opened his eyes and watched her carefully, looking for the lie he expected but couldn't find. Because it was the truth.

His hands reached up to her, hesitating centimetres in front of her face.

An impatined sound at the back of her throat, Hermione took both hands and leaned closer, one knee on the mattress beside him and kissed him.

He didn't hold back then anymore, dragging his fingers through her hair and then flipping them over so she was on her back. The covers below were still radiating his warmth where he had been before, and all Hermione wanted to do was bury deeper into it, bury into _him_.

He kissed her again and then moved a leg over her, straggling her hips. His hands were touching every inch of her body like a collector, like a cartographer discovering all the valleys and hills of a newly discovered country.

"Let me make you fall in love with me," he whispered.

She shook her head, and then a laugh escaped her. He looked insecure for a second, but Hermione pulled his head down and kissed him deeply.

"I already did."

And she didn't know if she wanted to laugh or cry when his face shifted from satisfaction, to love, to hunger in a matter of seconds.

"Good, because I'm not letting you go."

He touched her, his fingers burning her flesh, and she became undone under him. She wanted him, and she wanted him whole.

 **END**

* * *

 **This is it...**

 **I can't believe it took me over a year to write this story. Thank you to all who have been with me all this time and have read and reviewed this story!**

 **Let me know what you think of my ending :)**

 **The good news is: I'm already working on my next project, you'll find updates on my profile page!**

 **This story wouldn't exists as it is without Nora Fares and without KoolStoryBro. You two are the best betas in history, and I seriously would have given up on this story and maybe my whole writing without your constant support :') I've learned so much thanks to your feedback!**


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